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Hall of Frames Designer Show in New Venue

11th October 2013  The historical setting of  Volkshaus is the venue for the 2013 edition of Hall of Frames Zurich. Opened over one hundred years ago, the building has had several incarnations – from rooms where people could bathe to political activities. Nowadays, the beautifully renovated structure is the scene for concerts and business events. A glittering roster of fashion-led companies are exhibiting – Götti Switzerland, Lafont, Lunor, Tarian, Theo, Undostrial, Face à Face, Lindberg, Suzy Glam, and Kilsgaard, among others. Lindberg unveils their beautiful new designs – including this lovely sun model – style 8577 – in sea and sun colourations. www.lindberg.com

Tartan is bountiful on the fashion scene this season, and Scotland has also inspired Face à Face Paris with this smart Tartan frame. Also presented at Hall of Frames Zurich will be the new fun frames in the Bocca range by Face à Face – a must have for nights on the town and clubbing! www.faceaface-paris.com

All roads lead to Zurich the 13th and 14th October for Hall of Frames at Volkshaus! www.hallofframes.ch www. volkshaus.ch JG

Best of Britannia 2013, The Farmiloe Building, London

8th October 2013 Straight from Paris yet we have managed to reach Best of Britannia during last week, a super exhibition that concentrates on British made brands and talented designers from the UK. Personal favourites at the show included accessories by Age of Reason – www.age-of-reason-studios.com – and exciting shoes from Caroline Groves, bespoke shoemaker – www.carolinegroves.co.uk, and naturally, specs from Fan Optics, the only eyewear label present. Among the new styles exhibited by Fan at the Paris show and at this London event was the Ailen sunglass style in eye-catching Metallic Camo – this statement design with a lovely flattering shape and pattern is flying off their exhibition shelves – produced in a relatively limited batch, we happen to know that some of them are being packaged up for the Far East as we speak. See more on their collection at www.fanoptics.co.uk

We also met young designer Lizzie Lock – www.lizzielock.co.uk –  whose sweeping natural brims and paired down minimal hat shapes looked very tempting; and we visited Ayten Gasson, specialists in silk lingerie trimmed with vintage and locally sourced English lace. www.aytengasson.com. Overall, the exhibition was inspiring and well curated by the team at Best of Britannia, although we’d like to see more handmade British eyewear in the mix next year. See more on the show at www.bestofbritannia.com CN

Photography by Eyestylist.com.

Pilates Training for Pascal Jaulent at Face à Face

4th October 2013 Today we launch a new Eyestylist series – “Designers Off Duty”. What do designers do when they aren’t creating eyewear? We asked several designers to share with us their “off duty” hobbies and passions beyond eyewear. We start the series with Pascal Jaulent from Face à Face Paris.

“During my free time, I practice Pilates –  a mental and physical training – with my personal coach Sandra Giancolla. I’ve been doing Pilates for five years now. This discipline is part of my busy weekly timetable and I never postpone this appointment. I like Pilates because it requires that you concentrate on the entire body for smooth movements, with the objective of looking for the perfect movement for increased benefits. My coach Sandra was born in Argentina and she is a fencing champion, and took part in the Olympics in Barcelona and Los Angeles. For many years she has specialised in Pilates, and she makes me work very hard!” JG

www.faceaface-paris.com

Colour with a Noble History…..

1st October 2013 The colour purple is recognised as the symbol of good judgment; plus it is associated with the supernatural, as well as royalty. Purple is also the most favoured colour of artists. The magic and mystery of the colour fascinates eyewear artists this season, as collections feature beautiful variations on the purple theme: lilac, amethyst, violet and lavender. Two purple versions we fancy are shown here: Vera Wang’s stunning sunglasses – Josifa – in luminous purple acetate combined with burnt orange. The gracious colour gradation is one of the prevalent themes in recent shows. www.kenmarkoptical.com

The dynamic impact of purple is evident in this striking Kilsgaard design. Lightweight aluminium  – style 59.8 – is sculpted into a round shape with gentle softness, and acetate sides. Trends in eyewear shapes are centred on classic lines, but with intriguing variations, thus giving a new dimension to the designs. www.kilsgaard-eyewear.com JG