No longer just for better vision

By Chris Tumelap

JAKARTA (JP): How many pair of spectacles do you have? That's probably the kind of question you would ask a person who wears glasses nowadays. Not "how long have you worn spectacles or how bad is your eyesight?"

The main reason for wearing eyeglasses is no longer about better vision. It's now more about standing out in a crowd. "Hey, they're cool glasses, they must be Loewe, or are they Prada?' Yeah, that's more like it.

Regular prescription eyewear, just like their cousin, the sunglasses, is enjoying better status in many people's lives, shifting from merely a vision enhancer to a vital lifestyle instrument, a statement.

"People are now more daring in expressing themselves, what they like, their style, what they want to look like. Many of those who wear trendy, colorful glasses today are not celebrities or fashion enthusiasts, they're just ordinary people who want to try something new and look good," noted designer and entertainer Robby Tumewu told The Jakarta Post.

A self-claimed eyeglass aficionado, Robby has a collection of about 15 pairs, all prescription, with many custom made or modified from frames made by various world-class designers like Alain Mikli.

The new status of eyeglasses as a lifestyle statement has motivated many clothing designers and fashion design houses, from Donna Karan New York to Miuccia Prada and Loewe, to add eyewear items to their existing clothing, accessory, bag and shoe lines.

Their new eyewear collections are usually found in the local market two or three months after their initial launching in Europe or America. A particular style of frame which gets the warmest welcome from local customers usually remains the trend setter for one or two years before another new, more appealing style comes in.

Fun and function

Thanks to rapid development in optical technology and the never-ending creativity of fashion designers, people can now wear prescription glasses that perfectly offer both the practical function of vision enhancer and the appealing aspect of over-all look optimizer.

Frame choices are abundant, such as the John Lennon circle look, the typical pilot frame and the great grandparent, serious look.

The choice of lenses also varies from the regular clear-no- frills to rainbow, gradient colors, silver, gold and copper metallic mirror coating. Mirror coating is purely cosmetic. The wearer perceives no difference in vision regardless of what color the coating is.

Not to mention the material of the lenses and the various method of lens coatings. Lenses are generally made of either glass, which is the most scratch resistant; polycarbonate, which is a durable, virtually unbreakable material and offers greater impact resistance than glass; or plastic, which is lighter than glass, has better optical quality than polycarbonate but is far behind glass lenses in the sharpness of visual perception.

Lens coatings enhance the performance and appearance of lenses. You should get lenses with a scratch-resistance coating to protect the surface and thus make the lenses last longer. It is best to get an ultraviolet treatment and antireflective coating as well.

Many people, especially people who do a variety of activities, can benefit from more than one pair of eyeglasses.

Robby says sometimes he takes five pairs of glasses with him when traveling. "I need one pair to go to the beach, one for a business meeting with clients and another for evening functions," he says.

Wolter Dajono, a father of two and grandfather in waiting, has five pairs of prescription glasses and one pair of sunglasses. He says he needs one pair at home and another pair at his office.

He denies being a fashion enthusiast. "I bought the other pairs simply because they looked good, were branded, expensive and because many of my business colleagues, including my boss, wear them," he said.

What's hot

Light, sleek and rimless eyeglasses with lightly tinted lenses are now in for prescription glasses. Lenses are still narrow, although many still look for the more serious and classic-look plastic frames in black, brown or tortoiseshell, which dominated the local optic market sales throughout last year.

Most people now go for lighter frames. Shop assistants at several optic stores in Senayan Plaza and Plaza Indonesia say that many of their customers prefer to buy frames made from titanium for their prescription glasses.

But the main attraction are sunglasses, says Ina Rizqie Amalia, store manager for the upmarket Loewe and Celine boutiques at Plaza Senayan.

"Frames for today's sunglasses come in various shapes, plus sunglasses lenses come in a wide range of colors too. There is more to choose from in the market, especially after fashion designers decided to add eyewear to their clothing lines," Ina said .

French fashion house Celine introduced its eyewear line this year.

For women's sunglasses, the modified cat-eyes shaped, rather thick plastic frame as well as the feminine look inspired by the 1960-1970s Sophia Loren style in glamorous larger sizes with pastel and earth-toned lenses are hot items today.

Men are wearing glasses fashioned after those worn by fabled aviators. They are large and, most importantly, have colored or polarized lenses. Alternatively, they wear super funky, super large industrial goggle-like glasses, the lenses of which also, of course, come in various shades of colors.

Robby says the generous sized aviator frame with colorful lenses will continue to dominate the market next season. "Wide, square frames with colored lenses, such as industrial goggle-type frames will probably become the hottest item in the sunglasses line," he added.

Fitting frames

The first and most important thing is to find sunglasses shapes that perfectly complement your face shape and match your personal style.

People with a round face may be better off trying rectangular frames to lengthen their face. A square face with a strong jawline and a broad forehead may benefit from narrow frames to help soften the angles.

A triangular face with narrow forehead and wide cheeks and chin are best advised to wear bold colored frames that have more detail on the top half, or cat-eye frames.

Those with oval faces can smile wider because, with their faces already in balanced proportion, they can look good in almost any style of frame.

You should also consider the type of activities you are involved in and your personal character. Many creative people, for example, go for more modern shapes like geometric lenses in colorful, thick plastic frames, while conservative businesspeople opt for a more simple style with a sleek frame made of light metal or plastic.

If you prefer to own only one pair of glasses, avoid trendy frames and pick a classic style instead so that you will look forever chic.

Robby encourages people to try frames that suit their likes. "Go for it. No one should be labeled a fashion victim just because he or she wears unique, gigantic, colorful eyeglasses. I personally don't care about what people say about my glasses."