Hello, I’m a glasses nerd. I’ve worn glasses since I was 4. I’ve done the whole history of dorky glasses. Oooooh, yes: horn-rims, over-sized flastic fantastics and….an eye patch. 
When I tell this story, I found most people struggle to top it: when I was 12 I had to wear an eye patch for a 18 months. Not a cool pirate one; a piece of beige tape over the left lens of my horn-rimmed frames.
It gave me a particularly BROWN and befuddled look. Yessum, I was special. Right at a time when the 6 other girls at my primary school were getting boobs and boyfriends.
Which puts me in a most authoratative been-there-done-that position to advise on embracing an awkward aesthetic fixture.
Yours might be a bald head. Big boobs. Crooked teeth. Or a “thing” for wearing combat boots that you just can’t shake.
The thing is: I could get corrective surgery. Or contacts. But I never have, despite even being offered it for free. Why? Glasses are part of me. My look works around them.
So instead I:
– don’t shirk. I wear my glasses boldly. And I wear bold glasses. When you make a stamp firmly, people believe what you’re doing is the right thing to do. People believe that my glasses-wearing is good because I don’t apologise for them. The bald man can do the same. It doesn’t have to detract from an evolutionary mating POV…it doesn’t have to suggest weakness (bad eyes, follicular inadequacies).
– work with, not against or around. I don’t wear jewellery near my face to detract from the “glasses effect”. Glasses are my jewellery.
– be an expert. I also know what shapes suit my face. A tip: for most women a bold line across the top that emulates the shape of a great brow is best. I also think that a shape that extends a little beyond the cheekbones can add some great structure to a longish face.
– have fun with it: Over the years I’ve learned you don’t need to buy glasses from an expensive optometrist. These ones above I bought for $10 in Hong Kong from a street stall of dress-ups toys. I’ve got a pair of red sunglasses from Sportsgirl that I put prescription lenses in.
As a BTW note:
The ever-delightful Frankie Magazine has just done a Nerdy By Nature shoot in their latest issue…I’m onto something!
All of which:
Is a bit of an excuse to display these pics….
- Colin Firth sees good in The Single Man
I like this girls’ glasses (below). They’re from her own collection at Prism. Ditto the ones above.
Some other bits and pieces of advice:
* If you’re in New York, Silver Linings in Thompson St has the BEST vintage specs. I also like Vintage Frames Co.
* Have fun buying online via glasses direct.
* Look out for double-bar action. My latest sunglasses have these. I rather love.
*Check out Jo from NZ’s sweet blog Eye Heart Glasses. She is a true quirk embracer.
* Whenever you’re in Asia, get your script made up… it’s soooo much cheaper. Vietnam and Hong Kong are great – about $30 for a standard prescription and they generally take about an hour.
* And look out for GRAZ specs. You can buy via grandsocial. The best Australian sunglass designer. Hands down. He’ll soon be doing standard frames, too.
