• Men's Fashion Basics

Men’s Fashion Basics – Part 39 – Eyewear

Slowly but surely we are coming to the end of our magical journey through the mystical depths of men’s accessory basics. Hopefully we’ve all learned a lot and are starting to incorporate accessories into our everyday looks and outfits. But before we move on to bigger and better things there are just a few more items that I’d like to check off the list. The first one being eyewear. Now there are a couple of articles scattered around the site on this topic already but I thought it was about time that we got the whole thing sorted out into one simple to use guide. By which I mean this article is going include both standard glasses and sunglasses. I think glasses are great. I’m fortunate enough to not require them at the moment but for the guys amongst us who do, I have always marvelled at the missed opportunity they are. Glasses are a great accessory, probably the easiest item to readily make your trademark and communicate a lot about the kind of person you are. I’ve always liked the way people such as Buddy Holly, Malcolm X and Woody Allen boldly wore their frames and used them as an extension of their personality. It was only a couple of years ago that everyone seemed to be raving about laser eye surgery, but now you can see people like Johnny Depp, Justin Timberlake and Philip Crangi readily embracing eyewear again.

Things To Consider Before Purchasing Glasses

But first, where do you begin? Well, let’s break it down into four steps:

1. Shape – this is the most important part guys! You want to make sure you purchases glasses that suit your face. As a general rule what you want to do is off-set the geometry of your face. For example, if you have a long face you will want something that covers the centre of your face more to hide the distance from forehead to chin. So larger frames would be ideal. For a more detailed breakdown of face types check out the appendix at the end of this article.
2. Size – now this is an easy one. Really focus on making sure that your eyes are centred in the frames of the glasses that you’re looking to buy. As long as you get that right, you will be OK for size.
3. Colour – now this can be really personal to you and will probably be the thing that you consider the most. Some of you might want to bring out your hair colour and some of you your eye colour. The most popular and simple choice is to compliment your skin tone. So if you have pale skin then you will be looking for blacks, charcoals and silver to contrast with it. Or for something a bit more subtle, check out some of the pastel shades that are on offer. Darker skin looks great with bronze, gold, reds and oranges while medium tones will benefit from burgundy, brown, copper and tortoise shell to bring out the warmth of the skin.
4. Fit – the final stage should be making sure that the glasses fit you properly. So make sure they are evenly balanced on your face and aren’t at such an angle that they leave a mark on the bridge of your nose.

And those are the basic rules that you need to know when buying a pair of glasses. These are things that any good eyewear store should run through with you – but if they don’t, make sure you do! A good pair should last you a long time. If you don’t feel confident enough to pull off a pair of big chunky plastic rims then don’t worry, start off with something a little more slim and subtle and then the next time you decide you need a pair you may of gained confidence from extended use. Of course, for those of you who don’t need glasses but are buying into the idea of wearing the faux ones available in the high street – grow up, yea?

In Addition – Sunglasses

As I said earlier, this article does also cover sunglasses and, in part, it already has. The same rules apply to your shades as they do your specs. The only other thing that does need to be taken into consideration when buying sunglasses is UV protection. Now as much as I’m sure that I sound like your Mum, hear me out. One major contributor to eye disease is ultraviolet radiation and this is why it’s important to choose a pair of sunnies that protect you from the harmful effect of UV. Just because your glasses have a dark tint doesn’t mean that you are protected from UV – make sure you check when you buy them. Other than that, bear in mind the rules above especially the ones concerning face shape. There’s nothing worse than seeing a guy with square head strutting around in an eclipsing pair of Aviators that he thinks makes him look like Maverick but really he looks like The Fly. Oh, I’ve yet to mention anything to do with sunglasses in bright colours for the summer. I actually really like this as an idea and it fitted in really well with the festival-chic looks that were happening last year. I would recommend learning from my mistake and buying those types of sunglasses cheap because the wars those bad boys go through in the Summer means they’re never around for long!

Matt Allinson

Matt graduated from Leeds University in 2009 and is currently studying for an MA in Multi-media Journalism at Bournemouth University. He is in charge of the Men’s Fashion Basics section which provides you with a step by step guide to becoming a stylish individual in any situation.