Ask Angie: and all - On the prowl for glasses round #1

Not long ago I started a thread about hair and glasses. I think I'm headed in the right direction with an adjustment to my hairstyle, now onward and upward to glasses. Putting these collages together has been a LOT of 'face' time. Like you know how it is when you stare at a word for too long and it doesn't look right? That.

All of these frames are from two stops today. Unfortunately the friend who went with me to breakfast and shopping failed one of the golden rules of girl friendship - spinach and poppyseeds in the teeth need to be pointed out! So sorry about random food stuffs that show up in the pics. I couldn't see them in my puny phone display.

Pic 2 is my current glasses which I don't think I have ever really warmed up to. I think they make me look like a man.

Pics 3, 4 and 5 are collages of a multitude of frames. You'll be tired of my face soon too.

Angie's advice to find frames with my brow shape and a lift at the sides was certainly at the forefront of my elimination process but I don't know how successful I was. Anything much rounder was just wrong. I'm sure some of these are just too dark as well. A few received an odd reception from the optician when I made my final selections and put on the fashion show for her : )

I've worn glasses since I was 5 years old, so I'm not bothered by having them be "seen". The frameless pair is in the mix just to throw in something different.

I know none of them will make me look younger, but I don't want them to make me look older! A friend commented that she thinks frames with a frameless bottom are "old" looking. With that in mind, I do have dark circles under my eyes.

Do you think any of these are a winner, or should I keep looking?

Thanks a million!

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12 years ago

Anonymous

Not Angie, but I like the second pair in the first grouping best.

Liz A.

Veteran

I think I like the first one from the first grouping the best. Followed by the third one from the second grouping. They're still a bit hard to see in these photos. I'd like to see better pics of those two, but I still like your old ones as well!

Did you make changes to your hair?

pil

Thanks, Joy. That is one pair that the optician looked at cockeyed but I am oddly drawn to them.

Liz, my hair appointment isn't until next month. I sent the Heidi picture you posted in that thread to my stylist and she thinks it a good one for me! We'll start working toward that. My hair grows pretty fast.

Carla

Second pair first grouping best, and there is something about the third pair second grouping and last pair last grouping that are also good, but not perfect.

Thanks, Carla. Any luck with your search?

Adelfa

I love the third pair in the first grouping.

First of all, it's so nice to see your pretty face! Secondly, IKWYM about looking at your own face in a close-up for too long, ugh! You do NOT look manly at all in your current frames (how could you, possibly?) but surprisingly that is something I struggle with as well. Well I'm surprised that you feel that way about yourself anyway! You have beautiful, feminine features and gorgeous thick hair. I can't wait to see what you do with it because it looks pretty darn good now.

Okay now for the frames. Of course I am biased towards frames that look like mine, because that is my personal preference. I agree that rimless glasses can make people stereotype you into a certain age group, so I like the bolder acetate frames, particularly the ones that Joy liked, the second pair in the first grouping. The third pair in the first grouping look exactly like mine, but I think the second ones seem slightly more in balance with your facial features. If you want to go with ones with nose pads, I hear they are more adjustable, so even if they look a bit wonky in the demos they can be made to fit you perfectly. Of those in the last grouping, I'd choose the second or fourth pair. I think the third pair might be a bit wide for your face. Kudos for all your hard work! I know it can be exhausting in more ways than one.

Lyn D.

I like the first pair in the second group.
Some of the frames look a bit dark and heavy- so hard to chose frames isn't it?

I'm glad to hear you liked my inspiration photo. Can't wait to see the results with your new fab glasses. You really do have some nice choices here. Maybe after some more votes we can see the larger versions of your top picks?

clairelouise2

Active Member

Definitely the first pair in the first grouping for me. I agree that the rimless ones are less flattering on you, but that could be as I have a definite preference for stronger frames right now

missvee

I like the second in the first, the third in the second, and the second in the third. (I doubt I'll ever write that sentence again :-).)I'm a specs wearer too so I sympathize with your struggle.

kkards

as a fellow glasses wear, i can sympathize with you, i find picking out new glasses unbelievably hard. you wear them everyday, they are the 1st thing that everyone else sees, and (at least the way i buy mine) last for a few years. i also require that mine be very comfortable, both for work and for play.
are all of these choices comfortable? some of them look every heavy, which would bother me.
i would love to see you in a frame that has more color, maybe some underlying red, like your hair in the 1st picture.

Suz

(website)

#2 in montage 1, #3 in montage 2, and #2 in montage 3. But I don't think you've quite found "the ones." It is a very tough process. Or sometimes a bizarrely serendipitous one. Once or twice I've had the experience of plopping something on my face at random only to learn (after many other experiments) that it was the frame for me!

Eliza

I agree with others about the shape, preferring #2 in montage one and #3 in montage 2. Did you try any frames that were lighter in color? Perhaps it is just the photos, but I wonder how a lighter tortoise shell or another color that is a bit less high contrast might work. I know people who successfully wear dark, heavy high contrast frames for a contemporary look also, so it is a matter of preference. Your hair tones are so pretty and could help inform your color choice as kkards suggested.
Good luck with your search. I find glasses so tricky to select- so many variables.

Angie

Fashion Stylist

Great job getting the ball rolling, Pill :). You are on the right track finding the right shape to suit your brow line and face width.

In group #1 - #1 and #3 are the best shapes
In group #2 - #3 is the best shape
None of the shapes are right in group #3. All too wide and big.

I vote no half rimmed specs with nose pads though. You need a frame with more contrast against your face.

In group #1 - #2 is the best "look" and I like the shape (angular) but it's the wrong size. Just a little too big all over. You look great with specs sans nose pads! Have you tried on some colours?

Thank you everyone, you have been so helpful! I'm sorry to have started a thread asking for advice then not checked back in.

Angie, thank you so much for your input! You and the others are surely pointing me in the right direction and the half rimmed frames will remain on the display from here on out The colors don't show up at all, but one of the frames is actually a dark teal. I find myself drawn to green frames - I like the color and my eyes are greenish/bluish. So far what I'm finding is a color in a style that doesn't work and vice versa. PPP!

@adelfa, thanks - you are on the same page as Angie
@claire, you are too nice! And thank you for the thoughtful analysis!
@Lyn D, thank you! I see what you are saying about the dark frames and yes, it IS tricky picking the right pair
@Liz, oh yes, I'll definitely be posting more - and hopefully better - pictures for the final say!
@clairelouise2, I really like the stronger frames on other people but I'm a bit intimidated by them now because I'm not all that happy with my current glasses. That must be what influenced me to try so many of the half rimmed.
@missvee - that sentence was quite a tongue twister of sorts
@kkards - exactly! I tried a couple of red pair yesterday - one more successful than the other - and will try to get those pics posted.
@Suz - If I haven't already said so in other posts - namely the asymmetric top suggestion - you are a genius! (and tell your daughter I said so - a teen needs to hear that about their parents occasionally!) I tried a random shape yesterday that I "think" may be working.
@Eliza, I've tried looking for lighter colors but there really isn't that much available here unless I want to look like Sophia/Ma from the Golden Girls Hopefully something will turn up!

ETA - that's a lot of smiley faces

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