Design & Inspiration

Summer Stories

28th June 2013

Shades for men who know their style

28th June 2013 This month, Kilsgaard sunglasses are one of our favourite recommendations for men who want to get away from wearing the obvious. This high-quality Danish label produces clean, precise styling in aluminium, combined, if you wish, with slick luxurious acetate temples. The minimal, classic shapes in their range for men are paired with deep soulful colours and the technical qualities are built in carefully – colours, for example, are anodised so they cannot peel away; the materials are perfectly light for really easy comfort.

Designed in Denmark, produced in Italy and colour anodised back in Denmark – no corners cut here -, styles such as model Sun 6.7/7 below, in a matt green, and the strong masculine shapes such as Sun 5.1/1 and Sun 2.1/1, are fitted with polycarbonate lenses that have coordinating colour tints with the super frame tones. Kilsgaard is an award-winning independent eyewear label (iF Product Design Award 2010 / red dot design award winner in 2010), created by Jacob Kilsgaard in 2007 in a design collaboration with the famous architectural design company, Bonnelycke MDD. CN

100% Optical 28 FEB - 2 MAR 2026, Excel London

www.kilsgaard-eyewear.com

Model Sun 6.7-7 by Kilsgaard — Model Sun 6.7/7 by Kilsgaard

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Adventuresome Eyewear

31st May 2013

Stunning Collection from LGR

31st May 2013 Luca Gnecchi Ruscone’s fabulous Safari Limited Edition awakens one’s sense of adventure! The Italian designer is inspired by the continent’s wild beauty and romantic surroundings, and the collection includes two sophisticated silhouettes in four colour combinations (above). Each frame has its own special lens adapted to light conditions that prevail throughout African voyages. Ocean (top row) highlights the glorious blues of the Indian Ocean, and the gradient lenses are made for the extreme weather conditions in the tropics. Forest is a tribute to the lush forests in central Africa, and the beautiful gradient and photochromic lenses provide maximum protection from direct sunlight.

Eyewear Adventure - Safari Limited Edition by LGR — Eyewear Adventure – Safari Limited Edition by LGR

The magical colours of Africa are further captured by LGR in Savanna, as it recalls sunsets and red shadows. The polarized neophan layer on the gradient lenses is made from rare earth elements. The fourth colour celebrates the sandy dunes of the Sahara, where light frequencies are amongst the highest on earth. These lenses are double mirrored and darken around the upper and lower area to give protection from the sun’s glaring rays.

If you love adventure – whether in Africa or other ports of call – these LGR sunglasses are dynamic and so elegant. www.lgr-sunglasses.com JG

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Vintage Spirit

29th April 2013

Designs With Retro Heritage

29th April 2013 Vintage is an international language – witnessed here with two retro inspired designs created in far-flung countries – Australia and Hungary. From “down under” Jono Hennessy’s Rad Grad makes a strong vintage statement with its finely crafted shape in elegant crystal and black acetate. www.jonohennessy.com

Vinylize in Budapest endorses the vintage theme with this sleek cat eye design, Tadashi, created from vintage vinyl records. The gentle shaping highlights the natural grooves from the records. Unique! www.vinylize.com JG

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Themes & Variations

29th March 2013

Round Shapes With Distinction

29th March 2013 In our recent travels, we have spotted several round shapes that quickly became favourites. There are adventurous round versions, and lovely classic interpretations as well. Interior designer and eyewear creator Veronika Wildgruber features frames with the lenses set into intersections (above Magnolia). The result is a very light design with chic and technical triumph. www.veronikawildgruber

Aubert by Sven Götti for Götti Switzerland

The simplicity of Sven Götti’s Aubert (above) is very appealing with its elegant round shape, highlighted with a delicately curved nosepiece, and beautifully crafted in titanium. The frame is as light as a feather, and extremely comfortable to wear. www.gotti.ch

Albany from the new ClassicS by Coppe+Sid

Tortoiseshell and round shapes are natural partners, and ClassicS by Coppe+Sid is a new collection with smart designs in smooth acetate. I saw this collection in Milan, and like the retro spirit with its modern character in quality acetate. www.coppeandsid.com JG

Design & Inspiration

Eyestylist in Milan

12th March 2013

Trend alert at Eyestylist: a neon flash

In the fashion world, everyone is talking about neon and flashes of colour combined with other tones and there are many accessories on this theme, as well as interpretations in the fashion collections. In Italy, at the recent eyewear fair there, Eyestylist saw many examples of neon detail and new ways of colour-blocking with bright tones in frames. For those who like these fresh flashes of colour, I’ve picked out two examples on black, but I’ve also seen some excellent shapes using classic tortoise with neon tones on the temple, end tip or as a lining, which are very chic also.

The newly launched Courrèges eye shades collection experiments with single tones – sherbets and fruit colours such as canary yellow and fresh orange – as well as two-tone contrasts, including the bright pink on black pictured. It’s an upbeat fashion collection that has instantly been noticed by the fashion boutiques – it’s available at Colette in Paris – and the playful interpretation of vintage Courrèges has been carefully re-worked through collaboration with French eyewear designer, Alain Mikli. The model pictured above is called ‘Eyelids’ and the eyelids themselves are removable. www.courreges.com/lunettes-paupieres.html

NEON 6600 c5 from Blue Magic Eye — Neon 6600 c5 from Blue Magic Eye

The Italian label Blue Magic Eye has adopted the neon theme in its latest collection, including this fresh acid green contrast on model 6600. The Bologna-based brand also produces frames in its 2013 collection with shocking pink and trendy turquoise flashes. This is a super way to wear colour on the face and adds edge to an everyday look. www.bluemagiceye.com CN