Eyestylist

| Eyestylist 3rd October 2019

Independent eyewear at Paris Fashion Week SS20

A little less sunshine (and fewer sunglasses on the street) but just as beautiful as ever, Paris Fashion Week’s street style looks were bold and breathtaking or deeply influenced by tradition. In eyewear, a sincere love and respect for heritage and classic couture was evident across the city with vintage designs and clean architectural shapes in muted tones being most popular with all generations. Above: Anna Dello Russo wearing an oversized mask in black. Photography by Gennaro D’Elia for Eyestylist.com.

Russian Model Alina wears thick rimmed tortoise sunglasses with leopard print

The cat’s eye continued to enjoy a spectacular showing at Paris, as in London and NYC – with all versions, from small and sleek to large or elongated worn by women – and increasingly, men too.

Elongated cat’s eyes: @kandelissa @mikhaelkale – Photo by Gennaro D’Elia

The elongated and sharply pointed cat’s eyes worn by many celebrities are still in vogue with the darker colours remaining the most elegant trend-driven statement for a striking finish or unique look – above, worn by Jessica (@kandelissa) with Mikhael Kale (SS20).

Leila Depina #PFW in small round sunnies

Metal frames have really taken off with a few particular shapes such as small rounds and ovals doing well. Our sightings of these styles indicated that this trend is strong and still growing.

Caro Daur : Valentino – photo by Gennaro D’Elia

With less rays throughout the week there was a chance to catch some models and influencers in glamorous glasses. Caroline Daur (influencer, blogger and entrepreneur – www.carodaur.com) wore a classic black cat eye with head to toe Valentino for the @maisonvalentino show by Pierpaolo Piccioli. Photography by Gennaro D’Elia exclusively for Eyestylist.com. CN

| Eyestylist 2nd October 2019

Silmo Paris: notes on what’s to come

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

Metamorphosis by You Mawo

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

 

SUSTAIN by Monoqool

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

Passion for purple at Kirk & Kirk

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

ROLF Spectacles: Titanium Skyline – advanced tech + crafting

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

VAERK no 104 in Champagne

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

Covrt Project: high-tech urban design / made in Italy

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.

SILMO Paris will take place from 2nd to 5th October 2020 at Paris Nord Villepinte. For more information visit www.silmoparis.com Eyestylist will report on more trends and new updates following SILMO Paris in the weeks ahead. This feature was written by Clodagh Norton. Please seek permission for reprints. All rights reserved.

| Eyestylist 27th September 2019

Independent eyewear collab – Rigards for UJOH: Paris launch

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.

The frame’s aesthetic pays special homage to dragonflies and damselflies, insects which the designer has studied with a keen eye. Despite their simple origin from “incomplete” metamorphoses and fragile wings of gossamer, they have come to symbolize beauty, ferocity, and purity of habitat, in almost every part of the world.

A second model – RG0123UJOH – was created alongside this masterpiece. This style is described as “a little more subtle” without the statement-making cut-out (and thus the colour contrast), yet still offering a resolutely distinctive and individual alternative for the less-audacious wearer.

Both styles are released in six colours, one of the highlights of which is Red—nicknamed ‘Akatombo’ (Red Dragonfly), a nod to the iconic creatures of Japanese nostalgia and song. Find out more by visiting Rigards at SILMO or Paris Fashion Week, or go to www.rigards.com – for previous features on Rigards via Eyestylist visit https://www.eyestylist.com/2019/08/the-viridi-anne-x-rigards-glasses-with-clip/  CN

 

| Eyestylist 26th September 2019

l.a. Eyeworks 40th anniversary celebrations

Forty years ago this month, Gai Gherardi and Barbara McReynolds opened an optical shop on Melrose Avenue in Los Angeles – l.a. Eyeworks. Four decades later, the pioneering efforts and energy of Gherardi and McReynolds have catapulted l.a. Eyeworks into an international and influential house of eyewear design.

l.a. Eyeworks 40th anniversary placard designed by artist Nina Palomba

The anniversary year kicks off with a window campaign that will adorn the facades of more than eighty optical retailers in seven countries. Two signboards feature custom graphic designs with the messages: ‘Raise your Glasses’ and ‘Uncensored Visions since 1979’ floating above the brand’s logo. Created by L.A. based artist Nina Palomba, the design is one of numerous multidisciplinary artists and inspiring personalities with whom l.a. Eyeworks has partnered for creative marketing and photos during forty years. For the Fall 2019 portrait campaign, l.a. Eyeworks is working with three visionary photographers who will creatively express Gherardi and McReynolds’s philosophy, cementing their inspiration: “the ever-changing diverse landscape of faces.” Among the brands most famous catchphrases is: ‘A face is like a work of art. It deserves a great frame.’

Portrait styled by Shirley Kurata and photographed by Mimi Haddon

In all their eyewear designs, Gherardi and McReynolds display an innate passion for colour and shape, which has enamoured opticians worldwide throughout the years. Deirdre McNally at Optica Dublin noted: “We truly admire and have fallen in love all over again with l.a. Eyeworks. They have a magic to understand eyewear.” The l.a. Eyeworks innovative magic continues to expand with exemplary designs that manifest originality, diligence and dedication, as well as passion and perseverance, that the founders have infused into their iconic brand. Congratulations to l.a. Eyeworks on this memorable occasion of their 40th Anniversary. www.laeyeworks.com JG

| Eyestylist 24th September 2019

Independent eyewear: at Milan Fashion Week

Synonymous with quality and chic, trendsetting style, Milan’s fashion week continues to be a mecca for luxury street style, good taste and individual dressing. Here is a sneak peek outside the SS20 catwalks by Italian photographer Gennaro D’Elia. Above: Leila Depina wears vintage Cazal – model 913, first launched in 2001.

Jessica Wang in metal rimmed sunglasses

Jessica Wang (www.notjessfashion.com) looked stunning in oval metal sunnies.

@SISSIZHANG in Gentle Monster X FENDI

Fashion buyer @SISSIZHANG wore the latest style in the Gentle Monster X FENDI collab.

Armela Jakova

Logos are worn with pride in Milan. Digital content creator and speaker Armela Jakova wore Gucci. For more photos from Milan Fashion Week visit our Instagram page @eyestylistmagazine. Photography by Gennaro D’Elia exclusively for Eyestylist.com.