REFLECTIONS OF THE PAST. From Dior Homme’s punk styled sunglass to Fendi’s youthful and lively spirit, this season’s eyewear collections offer a little bit of everything for every style
Eyewear from Dior Homme
The typically hot and strikingly bright summer day in Singapore is the perfect time for sunblock and, of course, a pair of shades. Coincidentally enough, it was on one of those days that Safilo chose to hold its preview of their fall/winter 2017 eyewear collection. The event was held earlier this year at The Arts House in Singapore, in a large white space where the glasses are displayed in individual booths.
For those unfamiliar with the Safilo Group, they are an Italian manufacturing company that is responsible for producing eyewear for brands like Fendi, Dior Homme, Hugo Boss, Tommy Hilfiger and Carrera. In Indonesia, these products can be found in Optik Melawai boutiques.
Eyewear from Carrera
Polaroid: Then and Now
The focus of the day was Polaroid Eyewear, which celebrated its 80th anniversary and took center stage by displaying their archived collections. Another highlight was a special 80th anniversary collection by featuring innovative and sporty designs through colorful athletic frames and flexible metal edges.
To mark the occasion, Polaroid Eyewear also released a five-minute film entitled “The Fish Bowl,” which traces the brand’s history all the way to its founder, Edwin H. Land, a college dropout who invented what we now know as polarized lenses.
Today, this innovation is alive and well, as showcased by Polaroid Eyewear’s UltraSight lenses, which consist of nine functional layers. The technical details could fill a whole book, but essentially, these layers will ensure glare-free vision with clear contrast. More importantly, however, you’ll be rid of that annoying circle of glare when seeing through UltraLight lenses.
The UltraLight lenses are also prevalent throughout Polaroid Eyewear’s fall/winter 2017 collection, which, this time around, showcased bright colors on the frames and a slight flash-effect on the lenses of. Ranging from its suave aviator sunglasses to its rounded tortoise-pattern sunglasses, Polaroid Eyewear’s collection this season was very in-the-now, so to speak.
Eyewear from Fendi
Carrera: Timeless and Classic
Taking a slightly different approach was Carrera, an eyewear brand that slightly plays on the retro and classic side. Case in point: The Maverick Collection, which sported a lot of vintage-styled shapes such as tortoise patterns and olive green lenses. But, of course, Carrera has a lot more on offer. As a matter of fact, this fall the brand launched an “Inspired by Jared Leto” collection (Jared Leto has long been the ambassador for Carrera, and has praised Carrera’s craftsmanship and timeless designs), which features two unisex eyewear pieces including one sunglass and one optical model. Incorporating ’60s retro aesthetics with an urban edge, both come in rectangular shapes with edgy detailing, sleek designs and light textures. What makes these shades truly distinguishable, however, was the thin metal bridge on top with the signature C logo inside the left tip.
Eyewear from Hugo Boss
Dior Homme: Long Live Rock and Roll
Dior Homme, on the other hand, decided to leave its mark at the temple tips of its sunglasses by curving up the metal edges to create the letter D. But this subtle detail might go unnoticed due to Dior Homme’s flashy and fashion-forward overall design.
Dior Homme’s Hardior collection, for example, took the helm as the loudest and most rock ‘n’ roll collection showcased that day. With inspiration from the New Wave of the ’80s, Dior’s Hardior glasses feature a flat-rectangular metallic-frame design that produces a mirror-effect on the lens. Making the collection more extravagant was its bright color palette which included silver, orange and neon green.
“All in all, there is one way to sum up this fall’s eyewear trends, it would be that vintage fashion will never go out of style”
Another stunner was Dior’s DiorGenese round sunglasses. Though less bold and loud compared to Hardior, the DiorGenese collection has that silver-tone that accentuates the contours of the lenses, which makes it stylishly subtle when contrasted with its navy blue or black frames. What’s more, the DiorGenese sunglass are incredibly lightweight, owing to its Optyl frames that, by the way, is unique trademark of Safilo.
Display tables at The Arts House, Singapore
Fendi: All Fun and Games
Taking a similar approach, albeit more playful and fun, is Fendi. This season, the Italian luxury house took a slightly playful stance for its eyewear designs. The Fendi Air collection of navigator sunglasses, for instance, are given a modern twist with oversized square glasses framed with a shiny rose-gold finish fora classic but modern look.
But taking the trophy home for the most playful and vibrant design is Fendi’s Fantastic collection, which is uniquely upbeat. Comprising a lot of contrasting hues—such as olive green with red, orange with black or gray with a blue bridge—the ’80s themed collection was made even more exciting with its 3D tubular metal temples and colorful see-through acetate side details.
Hugo Boss: The Gentle Man
Side details, by the way, are also prevalent in Hugo Boss’ panthos-shaped retro sunglasses. These also featured removable leather side shields on the temples and around the double bridge. Only one color option was made available: all-black. Still, it looks very elegant and sophisticated. It’s Hugo Boss after all. Other than that, the brand also introduced Alcantara fabric for the temples or on the brow-line, which makes the glasses more durable and stain-resistant. The smooth, suede-like texture certainly helps as well.
Hugo Boss also played with practicality for the season by showcasing its advanced foldable design for metal sunglasses. This simply means that you can fold the glasses twice: Once near the frames and one more at the temples. If you’re a man who appreciates fine detailing, there’s also a distinctive micro-pattern on the nose-pads if you look closely.
Of course, there were quite a few other brands exhibiting their own exciting collections. Tommy Hilfiger, for one, unsurprisingly brought a collection that epitomized tje all-American boy with shades of the American flag (red, white and blue). Havainas also launched an eyewear collection that is perfect for the beach. All in all, there is one way to sum up this fall’s eyewear trends, it would be that vintage fashion will never go out of style.
Text Ricky Ronaldo
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