October 2020

New icons: Lafont Paris

It’s coming up to one year exactly since our visit to the creative studio of Thomas Lafont and Lafont Paris HQ in Issy-les-Moulineaux, a leafy south western corner of Paris near Porte de Versailles. This elegant, personal and historic world of creativity continues the traditions set by earlier generations since 1923, and Laurence and Philippe Lafont, Thomas’ parents before him. In their place of work, brothers Thomas and Matthieu Lafont, now the custodians of the business, are surrounded by fine books and arts and textile inspiration, as well as the rich and colourful archives of the esteemed French family business. Above: at the entrance of Lafont Paris, an explanation of the making of Jupiter, one of the label’s iconic P3 frames. This wonderfully classic frame style continues to be available – and is updated in a range of colorations.

Hirondelle 4047 by Lafont Paris; this intricate frame is named after the swallow, the small delicate pointed-winged bird

A year on, the latest Lafont frame creations, launched this September (at the Paris edition of Silmo Outside the Walls), are a reminder of Thomas’ dedicated creative work, highlighting a unique interest in textiles and how texture, pattern and playful colour combinations can be achieved in fine acetate. Model Hirondelle explores marble-like patterning with a bi-colour front in delicate complementary tones.

Halley 1082 by Lafont Paris: iconic pairing of panther print and crystal clear acetate – a specialty at the Parisian eyewear design house

Model Halley is the latest Lafont style in a line of rich and exotic animal print creations, each one bearing the signature artisan qualities of the fine materials, studied combinations and exquisite ‘made in France’ production so dear to the house. Lafont Paris is celebrating its 40th anniversary.  To find out more, visit their website and blog at www.lafont.com

Handmade in Italy: Essedue 8c

Handmade eyewear has an instant allure, and the Italian independent labels producing artisan collections of high calibre continue to show their magical creativity and commitment to tradition, even in these harshly competitive and difficult “Covid” times.

One of the new models at the Italian label Essedue – the 8c – combines the classic inspiration of a cat’s eye shape with a beautiful sinuous style derived from looking at flowers in their natural setting. Made in a substantial Mazzucchelli 1849 acetate, the small family-owned Essedue factory (located in Irpinia near Naples) has become one of Italy’s best kept secrets in eyewear production, creating designs born out of love for craftsmanship and a passion for authentic Italian elegance and  individuality in style. The frames carefully balance comfort and design, with attention to details and small inserts of colour on the frame front and temple ends, defining a special and uniquely crafted character. Each frame has a small red ‘logo design’ on the inside of the temple tip, a signature of the brand and a sign of authenticity and style finesse.

Essedue 8c – the new cat’s eye style from the Italian label

To see more new styles and visit the online shop visit www.esseduesunglasses.com. To see our top 10 frames of the month visit Eyestylist.com on Pinterest.

 

Lunettes Alf: through trends and time

Ageless beauty meets timeless design in new portrait imagery by Dorian Prost for Lunettes Alf

The new campaign from Lunettes Alf, rolling out in the months to come, expresses the modern versatility of the French artisan label, and its sober minimalistic style, inspired by iconic glasses of the 1920s and subsequent eras, with particular fondness for the 50s, 60s and 70s. Delicate yet powerful, ageless and uncluttered, the collection by Alf promises elevated finesse through primary materials – refined hand polished Japanese acetate combined with photochromic mineral glass lenses, and for the cord and case, natural leather. Above: Bernard Fouquet wears model h19.01, the optical version of Alf’s e18.01, an elegant, classic round spectacle design. Photography by Dorian Prost

a20.02 by Lunettes Alf worn by Maeva Prigent

Model a20.02 is a reinterpretation of a frame created by the Italian ‘salute pubblica‘ (National Health system) in the 1960s. The rectangular design and strong shaping of the bridge is reminiscent of Marcello Mastroianni’s eyewear style in Fellini’s great cinematic works. The frame is well suited to men and women and an oval face shape and comes in a retro-inspired variety of colours which include clear crystal, dark tortoise and black.

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a20.02 by Lunettes ALF worn by Bart Alalof

Lunettes Alf – and their artisan eyewear collection 20/21 was created by brothers Germain and Alexis Bouchara in 2018 and has quickly become available at some of the world’s finest optical boutiques including Kitschenberg (Munich), Frank Lo (Rome) and Opta (Paris). To find out more about the latest additions in the Lunettes Alf collection visit their website at www.lunettes-alf.com

Autumn/winter colour: Morgana by Tree Spectacles

As the seasons change, rich acetate colorations of magenta, cinnamon, rust, berry and maize, and a touch of pattern offer flattering looks with a wintery vibrance. At Tree Spectacles, the Acetate Bold Series by TREE Spectacles conveys both colour and a soft touch of decoration – similar to a marbling effect – with delicate transparent pastels through to intense 1970s inspired reds, browns and soft aubergine hues. The line is produced in two classic materials, eco-friendly acetate and advanced Japanese titanium.

Morgana by Tree Spectacles: colours in sync with autumn/winter trends

Tree Spectacles is a small brand from Belluno in Northern Italy an area of outstanding beauty known for its spectacle making traditions. Their versatility in working with a wide selection of fine materials and their desire to achieve artisan perfection in everything they create has helped them to evolve as one of the leading family-owned eyewear companies in the region today. www.treespectacles.com

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Kirk & Kirk : bold + colourful for ’21

Supersize styles in confident colours, from the UK design label

The colours just keep coming at the British eyewear company, Kirk & Kirk, whose latest additions in the Centena collection offer extra large sizes in bright, exciting statement colorways. The Kirks say that they are responding to a demand for larger sizing (adding eye sizes 59 and 60) with, in models Angus and Guy, an elevated choice of bright acrylic translucent tones – beyond the mainstream styles in brown and black. Above: Model Guy in the Centena collection. This square and angular men’s frame has a distinguished double bridge detail and thick temples. These frames come in a choice of ten technicolor tints.

All about style: Angus from the Centena Collection by British label Kirk & Kirk – in colour ‘jade’

Model Angus has a square eye shape with flat brow line. Created in acrylic in small traditional spectacle-making factories in France, the frames are very light to wear. By using a 10mm thick material the frame has the extra advantage of hiding “even the most challenging of lens prescriptions” to ensure a strong fashion vibe as well as real comfort. Read about the latest updates here https://www.eyestylist.com/2020/09/kaleidoscope-of-colours-kirk-kirk/ and find out more at www.kirkandkirk.com