My glasses of ten years* broke a year ago. And it just so
happened at the worst time possible: before my insurance kicked in. Okay, maybe
not the “worst time possible”. That seems a bit extreme given the current
economic climate. How about, “it occurred at an inconvenient time”? Much
better.
So my glasses broke and a friend of mine recommended I try
an Internet retailer named Warby Parker. They sell designer frames, with
prescription lenses and shipping, for $95. Plus, they donate a pair of glasses
(it’s not clear if the glasses are from their collection) to someone in need.
So I went to their site, uploaded a photo and decided to go
with a pair of black, horned-rimmed glasses named, the “Huxley”. After a year,
they are working just fine.
But that got me to thinking … maybe I should get a back-up
pair, just in case? However, since my situation wasn’t as dire, I decided to
use their “home try-on” option. You log in, select five frames and they ship
the glasses to you for free.
I chose the Felton with a fade, the Digby in a whiskey
tortoise matte, the Huxley in sandalwood, the Roosevelt in Bondi blue and the
Wiloughby in striped chestnut.
Then I created criteria for judging based on whether they
“enhanced”, “diminished” or were “neutral” versus my current frames. The
categories were as follows:
Handsomeness
Cool Factor
Desire to punch me
Desire to make out with me
Some frames faired better than others, with the Digby and
the Felton coming out ahead. It was a fun experiment and free, too. All I had
to do was put the frames back into their original packaging, use the provided
mailing label and drop the whole thing off within 5 days at a UPS shipping
location.
*Giorgio Armani’s
