Eyestylist

Must-sees at the Munich fair – a packed fair is coming for January 2020

The Munich fair is expecting a busy turnout at the start of 2020. From emerging labels right through to historic eyewear brands, the showcase of eyewear collections at this important event gives a thorough overview of design developments, shining the spotlight on young innovators, creators as well as a host of high-profile fashion eyewear designers.

One of the standouts every year at opti – for artisan frames – is Res/Rei Italy, a small label with a dedicated following, owing to their creative style and close collaboration with Mazzucchelli which results in some very unique and detailed acetate materials. Their products are excellent with many unique and creative shapes and timeless qualities. We also particularly enjoy their covetable jewellery line – made from the leftover acetates – and offering a very chic and special design, with colours that match up with frames. Above: model Begonia from the nature-inspired Flowers collection at Res/Rei – different acetates combine and overlap with each other like the petals of exotic flowers. The frame is pictured in a pink/light pink colorway matched with plain grey lenses. Find out more at www.resrei.com

Belgian design innovators theo have had a particularly spectacular raft of designs launched through 2019, with highlights including their mouth-watering Layer Cake series – featuring titanium plate designs created with two different layers.

At opti, theo will release a completely new “typically theo” eyewear family which they tell us is “warm, soft and comforting yet strong, powerful and unyielding, like….sand.” Check their new website at www.theo.be for more details about their collections.

The Alium collection is always a must-see at the FACE A FACE stand. This is a very distinctive line with focus on men’s eyewear where a balance of technological excellence and a modern approach to colour offers something quite beautiful and different to wear. See more Alium frames at www.faceaface-paris.com

We are Annu launched their collection at opti this year (check our Eyestylist opti review 2019 – www.eyestylist.com/2019/02/exceptional-design-at-opti/). We admire both the imaginative concept of paper clip inspired frames and their commitment to innovation and team success. A must-see for opti – find out more at www.weareannu.com

SALT. Optics travels from California for the opti event, with a collection inspired by nature and produced with rigorous Japanese quality driven techniques. Alongside the main line collection, the brand has launched some must-see fashion-focused collabs, which include SALT. + Second Layer and SALT. + Fred Segal where attention to detail and shared values such as quality materials have resulted in exceptional limited editions. www.saltoptics.com

opti – the international trade show for optics & design, takes place at Fairground Munich from 10th to 12th January, 2020. Registration is now open to trade visitors at www.opti.de. Written by Clodagh Norton – all rights reserved.

Warm red wine tones, natural eggplant and deep bordeaux have returned to eyewear for the winter season. This flattering array of hues are an elegant lift for winter complexions and cold weather wardrobes, and an easy accompaniment to work or formal attire – and will spruce things up for everyday. Above: Falvin Eyewear, model Equator in matt amethyst with precious rose gold detail. An all-rounder (for work and weekends) where the purple amethyst colour looks beautiful with a touch of gold. An excellent accompaniment to gold jewellery and accessories. www.falvineyewear.com

Style Miriam, in Bordeaux, is a newly released frame from  the British brand Kirk & Kirk; made in France it is produced in an acrylic material with a translucent quality that catches the light. The frame has been bevelled or “sculpted” on the edges which gives it a notable artisan finish. Find out more about the Centena collection by Jason and Karen Kirk at www.kirkandkirk.com

Parisian designer Caroline Abram combines colours in her new bold, feminine collection for winter, which highlights burgundy tones and chic shades of pink, adding hints of indigo, dark ruby and bright raspberry or fuchsia. For ophthalmic model Wisdom, the choices include burgundy/marsala (above) and indigo/purple, with the second colour in the pairing outlining the frame shape and providing definition at the brow. www.carolineabram.com

Italian eyewear designer Lara D’Alpaos is also creative in her combinations of colours and layering effects. In the new model Kristel from the Unique Collection at Lara D’, she matches black with deep bordeaux as a  couture trim on a sumptuous statement cat’s eye that plays with art nouveau shapes and blocked 3d acetate. Find out more at www.laradeyewear.com

British brands highlighted: Oliver Goldsmith Sunglasses, the iconic eyewear company, founded in 1926 and Covrt Project, a streetwear label launched in 2019.

In a London style focus by Eyestylist, we brought together two of the city’s finest street photographers with two British brands that define quality, individuality and eyewear attitude. Above: photographer @boyfromdagbon wears style Winston by Claire Goldsmith at Oliver Goldsmith Sunglasses.  https://www.olivergoldsmith.com/product/winston/ Photography by David Nyanzi (@davidnyanzi) for Eyestylist.com

Model Gopas by Oliver Goldsmith Sunglasses is ideal for winter light conditions with lightly tinted sun lenses which remove the brightness of interior light or glare from the sun on a winter’s day. The style is derived from an aviator with a flattened top and angular silhouette. For further details or to buy direct: https://www.olivergoldsmith.com/product/gopas/

Covrt Project’s MP4 from the _Mission One Sunglasses Collection defines this new brand’s ambition to balance innovation and a different design style with cutting-edge quality. MP4 is a hexagonal sunglass with a notable high double bridge and acetate bar. The design has undergone fine machine work to create the bridge and detailing and offers high-level functionality and comfort. This new label’s sunwear and accessories have launched at www.covrtproject.com CN

At an impromptu meet in Paris, surrounded by luxury chain designs, more akin to jewellery than most collections we’ve come across, film director Jenny Suen tells me she found her first vintage eyewear chain at a flea market in Paris. She has worn it ever since as part of her signature look. “Over the years, so many people asked me where they could buy one,” she explains. “It occurred to me that there were no chains produced in fine materials or designed with the modern woman in mind. So when I finished my last movie, I decided to create my own.” Above: model wearing Coco (18K gold plated with freshwater pearls)

Launched this year, the debut collection is made with 18-carat gold and freshwater pearls, a tribute to the filmmaker’s/designer’s hometown of Hong Kong, a city known as “Pearl of the East.” Offering sleek lines evoking the city’s iconic skyscrapers, and a romantic modern feminine design, the three launch pieces are named after women for whom Suen has special admiration: Marguerite (Duras), Coco (Chanel), and Faye (Wong).

Lien Atelier is stocked at Kite Shoreditch (UK), Marc Le Bihan (France) and Kapok Sun Street (Hong Kong). The name “Lien” means “link” in French and Chinese.

The popular annual eyewear fair Hall of Frames (Zurich, Switzerland) has issued imagery from its new season shoot which took place on site at Papiersaal over a sunny weekend in September. The frames featured include a mix of advanced materials, from  lightweight titanium to 3d printed designs, with state-of-the-art details, classically inspired shapes and interesting finishes and treatments. Above: Ørgreen Optics Coeda 964, produced in 100% pure titanium and beta-titanium. www.orgreenoptics.com Photography by Nina-Maria Glahé

Dieter Funk’s acetate frames, produced in Bavaria, Germany, lean toward classic or timeless design principles, with modern updates taking the form of special colorations and material/tonal combinations. For more details: www.funkbrillen.com

The Endlos series by Gmerna-based company Coblens combines titanium temples with modern rimless fronts; the frame front and sides are attached to the lenses with small antique inspired screws with a hexagonal shape. www.coblens.com

Quantum spectacles have an outstanding spherical hinge design and light construction in 3D printed polyamide. The innovative choice of subtle and bright colours is one of many highlights of the Danish brand’s eyewear expertise. www.orgreenoptics.com / Photography by Nina-Maria Glahé for Hall of Frames: https://www.ninamariaglahe.com/All rights reserved.

The next edition of Hall of Frames will take place on 13th and 14th September 2020. For more details, visit www.hallofframes.ch CN

Creative energies are running particularly high at theo this year, in preparation for 2020. SILMO saw an ingenious spread of collections, among them a fresh collaborative series – the third of its kind for theo – with designer Matali Crasset. ‘Dialogues’ explores conversation and chat, with focus on the two eyewear basics – the lens and whatever goes around it; how the two interact together or relate beyond the classic ‘glasses’ form becomes a feature and a “talking point” – without constraint in the construction or the technical finesse (of course!). Above: Model Debate, in fluo pink, by theo X Matali Crasset

Expressive, comfortable, surprisingly easy to wear. The result is six titanium styles with Crasset’s “signature” which bring a unique focus to the eyes of the wearer. Single colours emphasise the drama of the openwork and “floating effects”, exploring a bold vision, in theo style – with exquisite tones of fluo pink and orange through to sophisticated monochrome black or white – the two colours that Crasset wears herself.

Dialogues by theo X Matali Crasset was launched in Paris in September 2019; the frames will shortly become available in theo opticians worldwide. The collaborators have simultaneously launched ‘Blurred’, an even more ‘rebellious’ limited edition related to the Dialogues designs and created solely in black and white.

Matali Crasset is an industrial designer from France.  She has become known for a refusal of pure shape in her work and develops new typologies articulated around principles such as modularity, appropriation, and flexibility. She has worked on far-reaching projects in different disciplines and with leading brands including Alessi, Nodus and Le Buisson. For more information visit www.theo.be / www.matalicrasset.com CN

Silmo is a key event in the optical fair calendar where we discover innovations, new directions and trends in eyewear for the season ahead. This year, the breadth of creative proposals was significant, and attendance by independent labels showed a strong movement toward individual design, high level production and experimental work and expertise in colour, materials and eco-oriented design.

At Silmo, Tavat Eyewear showed their new avant-garde SpamCan Collection, the next step on from SoupCan, inspired by the quadratical shape of the iconic spam can or tin. Made from an impressive material composed of bronze, zinc and nickel, this new departure is highly technical and elaborate, with 27 components and a hinge based on the high-precision Swiss watch crown mechanism. The sunglasses are fitted with melanin sunglass lenses. Find out more at www.tavat-eyewear.com

You Mawo’s showpieces at Silmo included the Metamorphosis 3D printed Limited series and a visor design (above) with futuristic 3D side pieces. The main line has also expanded with some strong fashion shapes (cateye model Lyra) and a beautiful round design called Selene. www.youmawo.com

 

Monoqool launched the SUSTAIN sunglasses, a first 3d printed design made from castor beans farmed sustainably in India through the Pragati Initiative (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EHe1N43IN8o ). The company has entered the Sustain programme supported by the AM-Hub organisation in Denmark with the goal of helping a selected number of small/medium size Danish companies to develop sustainable manufacturing via 3D print technology. www.monoqool.com

Kirk & Kirk have done much to promote the benefits of colourful eyewear proposals from the UK, and continue to put out glorious colorations, in both their Centena and Kaleidscope collections, with emphasis on new tones of blue, pink and mauve. www.kirkandkirk.com

The Skyline collection at ROLF Spectacles is exceptional in its avantgarde designs in 3D printed titanium. The new styles have stunning combinations of smooth and textured ‘volcanic-like’ surfaces as well as offering a lightweight, easy-to-wear eyewear solution – putting this line in a category of its own. Image above: Photographer: Clemens Ascher http://www.clemensascher.com and clothes by Mühlmann https://www.muehlmann.eu  For more information about ROLF, visit www.rolfspectacles.com

New brands were plentiful at Silmo, the best ones focusing on advanced technology and technical know-how. VAERK Copenhagen puts the emphasis on beautiful engineering, tech and Danish design traditions. In collaboration with the renowned Danish industrial design duo Harrit-Sørensen, this brand has developed an innovative hinge concept that not only constitutes high level precision but also an aesthetically appealing link between the frame front and temple. www.vaerkcopenhagen.com

In a completely different departure for street style aficionados, London-based designer and creative director Marcello Martino launched Covrt Project in the “start-up” area of the Silmo fair. This bold Italian made collection includes 7 sunglass styles with advanced tech features focused on enhanced comfort, durability and individual design. The collection is accompanied by unique accessories: find out more at  https://covrtproject.com.

Ti Kwa’s avant-garde eyewear label Rigards always has something special to show at Paris Fashion Week and SILMO at this time of year – and for 2019 it’s a very special cat eye inspired by nature.

Collaborating with UJOH, Mitsuru Nishizaki’s award-winning womenswear line, model RG0123UJOH+ builds upon the traditional winged silhouette, with its upswept double rims, one made of ultralight aluminum-magnesium and the other of surgical-steel. The semi-stacked construction and negative-space cut away creates an illusion that the inner rims are floating over the face.