I have been observing my eyesight get worse over the years. My dodgy eyesight is a legacy from my parents. Glaucoma and cataracts run in my family on both sides so eye health it is something that I take seriously. I spend a lot of time looking at computer screens so my eyeballs need help. I am not strange in having one eye weaker than the other. The difference between my two eyes however is pretty staggering. I have one eye that is a 1.5. Pretty normal yes? The other is a 3.75 or as I loving call it, my Mr Magoo eye. My dodgy eye needs a lot of help.
My Style
You can read about my last pair of frames here. They were a beautiful cat eye frames… which I accidently sat on earlier this year! The size of my posterior plus the gravity resulted in lopsided frames that could not be revived. My current glasses style is an exaggerated cat eye. I feel like the older I get the more exaggerated the shape will become. In 30 years time the shape will be a cross between Iris Apfel and Dame Edna Everage. An exaggerated cat eye is not the easiest shape to come across. Which is why I ended up wearing them for a week before I found my replacement pair.
Bailey and Nelson
On a lunchtime wander through Covent Garden I found a Bailey and Nelson boutique. I had seen them online but since my glasses lost the battle with my butt, this was a good a time as any to go into the store and see their frames first hand.
The range of frames is not as large as some opticians on the high street. This is good because there is less opportunity to be overwhelmed. Their USP is that they don’t have the designer name behind them so they use the same quality acetate for the frame but at a fraction of the cost.
In I went hoping to find by beloved exaggerated cat eye shape. There were styles that were nice, but not quite right. So I asked the sales assistant ‘Do you have any exaggerated cat eye frames? I was expecting a no… but what I got was a ‘we might have something…’ the sales rep went into a draw and brought out the Audrey Lunettes. These frames are from 3 years ago and in fact are sunglasses frames. Exaggerated cat eye shape with a rose gold accent in the corner. Yaaaaaaasssssss!. Tried them on and instantly fell in love.
The Process
I had already had my eye test done on the high street at a branch that I have been going to for years. They have my history so are able to provide context as to the state of my eyes. In four years, there has been a slight worsening in my Mr Magoo eye. I returned to the store the following day with my prescription. The benefit for me of having an oversized sunglasses from for my glasses are that I don’t need the level of thinning for the Mr Magoo lens, which means less cost. I love these frame and get complimented on them regularly. They are lightweight, robust and cost literally half of what I paid for my specs four years ago. A week after I paid for my specs I received a text message telling me that they were ready. They were fitted on the day and you have up to 12 months to get additional adjustments made.
And then
Then a genius idea came to me when I was driving with the sun beaming down on me. PERSCRPTION SUNGLASSES! In decades of glasses wearing, I’ve never owned a pair of prescription sunglasses… but as my eyeballs are getting weaker, it makes sense to have a pair right?
I went back to the store and repeated the process. Do you have any exaggerated cat eye shaped frames I asked. This time the sales associate went downstairs… and returned a couple of minutes later with a couple of pairs in hand. The first pair were like my Audrey without the metal trim. Of course I liked the shape, but I already had this shape. I wanted something slightly different for my sunnies. The second pair I was shown are called Pavlov. Again they are from a few years ago. This shape is more rectangular to Audey’s triangular shape. And the price came in cheaper than the Audrey’s. Eh voila, a pair of specs and a pair of sunnies for less than the one pair I bought last year.
If are you in need of new specs, Bailey and Nelson are worth a look. Check out more non beauty posts here and here.