A versatile frame to suit many faces, especially mine…

I began wearing eyewear a short while ago, initially making do with some cheapish frames from a local chain store.
They did the job, but weren’t the most flattering.
I wanted to do away with them, but given the price of most good frames these days, had to do plenty of trying on before settling on a pair for everyday use.

What initially caught my eye about the Brooks frames from Garrett Leight, among a few other options, was the option of clip on sunglasses.
This was quite high on my list of criteria, and narrowed my options for frames considerably to begin with.
I didn’t want to splash out for a pair of prescription sunglasses, knowing that I’d have high odds of misplacing or forgetting them whenever I needed them.

I’d tried on a few other options, mainly classics like Persols and Moscots, and found that they were all less than flattering on my oval face shape with soft features.
The Brooks frames, however, have an appearance somewhat in line with the classic wayfarer style.
Something that flatters me much more than a chunkier acetate frame, and looks less overtly studious than a wireframe.

I was originally quite keen on a tortoiseshell acetate, but found myself sitting on the fence regarding what tortoiseshell did for my features.
The team at Opt Shop guided me towards the matte espresso colourway instead, which was an excellent choice as it goes well with my hair colour.

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I’ve been wearing these frames daily for some time now, finding them to be both resilient and comfortable.
Initially I had to have adjustments done a couple of times to prevent them sliding down my nose.
A lack of bridge pieces was something I had to adjust to, previously only having owned frames that had these pads.
I was initially concerned that the lack of these would exacerbate the asymmetry of my nose, but I find that they’ve done the opposite.

The clip on sunglasses (several options are available, but I prefer a brown tint lense) came in a beautiful ombré brown shade with gold-toned wireframes.
UV protection is good, with the lenses being polarised.
The only downside for me was that in spite of my base frames having anti-reflective spectacle lenses, I still get reflective artefacts from the sunglass lenses.
I’ve always been somewhat bothered by reflections in eyewear lenses, but these aren’t bad enough to put me off.
With time, I’ve learned to tune it out for the majority of my time spent wearing them, which is never usually a great chunk of the day regardless. It’s a minor inconvenience.

The clip ons come in a lovely brown leather carry case, excellent for keeping them protected in a jacket pocket.
It’s a sturdy case, well crafted and well fit for the frames.

It took some getting used to, the ritual of clipping them over the frames and taking them off without making a hack job of it.
However, I’ve become fairly adept at it now, and the convenience factor of being able to fold the sunglass frames into a compact leather carry case and put them in my chest pocket absolutely thwarts the idea of me ever bothering with conventional sunglasses again.

I look forward to more years spent wearing these frames.

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I want to give a shout out to Opt Shop Optometry in Rundle Mall. I was incredibly satisfied with the customer experience.
Their assistance (I dealt with several staff members and all were excellent) was invaluable in helping me find the right frames for my face, and their recommendations showcased their experience and professionalism.
I paid full retail for these, and have no commercial affiliations with the store.
But I’ll certainly be buying there again.