Cell phone belt holsters. White, New Balance 942’s. Carpenter jean shorts. If these items are part of your daily attire, then wrap-around sunglasses are probably already strapped to your face with zero risk of losing them (thanks to that handy sports strap).
If you don’t own wrap-around sunglasses and are considering whether they might be a good fit for your look (and your face), the team at Stoggles can help. Not only do we know safety, we know style.
We’ll explain why wrap-around sunglasses might not be the best option, especially if you need prescription lenses, and give you some other frame shape solutions that are a little less Dad-Gear and a lot more on-trend.
Why Lens Shape Matters
You might not know this, but the shape of your eyeglass lens is essential. Think about funhouse mirrors. When they are concave or warped, they distort your vision. Similarly, when eyewear has lenses that curve, they serve to either help correct or bend what you see in front of you.
Wrap-Around Woes
If you wear corrective lenses, you’ll probably be shopping for a pair of prescription sunglasses. You’ve got options, and you might consider wraparounds — that is, if your optician will do them for you (there’s a high chance they won’t).
The problem is that the wrap-around style of the lenses can distort the prescription vision correction in the lenses, making it difficult for you to see properly, and hence your optometrist won’t even recommend it. If you recently went to a carnival funhouse and wandered around confused until you threw up that overpriced hotdog, you know how unpleasant this sensation is.
When it comes to your specs, peering out of wrap-around lenses could cause images to appear blurry, out of proportion, and could lead to eye strain and headaches.
Why People Choose Wrap-Around Lenses
The only real argument for eyewear that gives you “fly eyes” is for protection. Consider your regular sunglasses. They leave your eyes vulnerable in key places:
- The space above your eyes near your eyebrows.
- Each temple, where the arm of your glasses passes toward your ear.
If you are involved in outdoor sports or recreation, safety has likely been (or should have been) a consideration when selecting eyewear. Protecting your vision from strikes and debris is important, and the wraparound lens feature gives your eyes protection in at least one of those vulnerable places.
Unfortunately, wrap-around sunglasses still leave the space near your eyebrows — as well as the area under your eyes — unprotected. Yeah, you spent a lot getting those eyebrows on point, but even more importantly, your eyes are still at risk.
Oh, and let’s be honest: Wrap-around lenses don’t support a fashion-forward look, and especially if you're rocking a chiseled Brad Pitt look, you'll have a real gap there. This is due to how most wraparounds are designed.
Unlike conventional glasses that have a flatter or linear profile, wraparounds, as their name suggests, follow a curved or spherical profile. However, our heads aren't spherical (which is good). To compensate for the human head shape, wraparounds tend to sit pretty far from your face, especially near your nose bridge. This is done to prevent the frame from crashing into your temple/forehead near each side of your eyes.
Better Solutions for Every Face Shape
Before we solve our problem of avoiding wrap-around eyewear, let’s first find a better solution that protects the vulnerable areas of your eyes and does an overall better job at keeping them safe.
Safety Features First:
Every pair of glasses you use to keep your eyes safe should have some standard features. At Stoggles, we go above and beyond to deliver a level of protection that is virtually unmatched in the industry. For example, consider our side and top shields. They provide the coverage and protection you need just in a different way that’s more appealing and functional (especially when you consider Rx).
Here’s what you’ll find in every pair of Stoggles (whether you choose cat eye, aviator, round, or square frames).
Shatter Resistance
Virtually every industry relies on the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) to regulate the shatter resistance of protective eyewear. The ANSI Z87.1-2020 certification means your eyewear won’t shatter when pelted with debris, so you can keep your vision for another day.
Think you don’t need shatter-resistant eyewear? Check out this article on why the ANSI Z87.1 certification matters (even if you’re doing lawn work or cleaning at home).
A Fix for Fog
Fog is frustrating. Fog-resistant eyewear fixes the situation. We pride ourselves on delivering an anti-fog coating/lenses that's the closest to being “anti-fog” in the real sense. Stoggles are treated with an anti-fogging dip coating so that you never have to take time out to wipe them down again.
Why a dip? Consider the Fun Dip candy. You would dip the candy stick into the powdered sugar mixture. It was smooth, even, and totally delicious. There’s a reason it was Fun Dip and not Fun Spray.
The anti-fog dip solution is far more even than anti-fog sprays or wipes, and it lasts longer too. The sugared-up, hyper kids of the 80s onwards get it — dips just hit indifferent.
Sun Shielding
Whether you’re exposed to UV rays outside or indoors, UV-blocking eyewear is essential. The sun is damaging to the eyes. In the short term, the sun can cause photokeratitis, a painful condition that is essentially like having a sunburn on your cornea.
Long term, your risk of developing cataracts and macular degeneration (two conditions that can rob you of your vision permanently) increases when you expose your eyes to UV rays without protection.
Blue Light Blocking
Raise your hand if you are exposed to blue light. Hint: everyone’s hands should be up. Blue light is emitted from the sun but also from devices like smartphones and tablets and sources like LED light bulbs and televisions.
Blue light can penetrate your eyes and reach the retinas. Because our exposure to blue light is so continual, it’s important to filter this light away from our eyes to avoid the risk of retinal damage. Blue light filtering lenses act like a shield, sending blue light safely away from your eyes.
Side and Top Shields
Remember that we said wrap-around lenses could warp your vision? There’s a solution. Side and top shields provide protection to those two vulnerable areas of your eyes, but they don’t interfere with your vision, and they’re safe for prescription lenses and are a game-changer in terms of comfort.
Side and top shields make more sense (and are more aesthetically appealing). The low-profile design offers protection without giving you A Bug’s Life vibes.
Choosing the Best Frames for Your Face
Everyone needs eyewear that protects their eyes but also makes them feel fantastic. That means the eyewear has to be comfortable and attractive. It’s easy to find the perfect frame when you know how to match your face shape to your shades.
Round Face Shapes
If your face is more circular than oblong, with a somewhat equal distance between your temples as your forehead and chin, you probably have a round face. You can add structure and definition to a round face with rectangle rims, square frames, or even cat-eye frames, which will give the illusion of higher and more prominent cheekbones.
Oval Face Shapes
Faces that have a shorter distance between the temples than the distance from the forehead to the chin are oval or oblong. To add more distinction at the cheekbones, opt for cat-eye frames, rectangle frames, or aviators, which will provide an overall larger fit across the cheeks.
Heart-Shaped Faces
When you have a smaller jaw and more prominent cheekbones, you have a heart-shaped face. Your face shape looks great with round or rectangular frames.
Triangle Face Shapes
The inverse of the heart-shaped face, a triangle face shape, has a larger jawline and a smaller forehead. Try frames that offer balance, like aviators or round frames.
Aviators For All
If you’re really not sure what face shape you have or you don’t like any of the options listed above, a pair of aviator frames complement virtually everyone perfectly. Aviators are generally larger than regular frames, and the oversized look stylish for every face shape.
Got a round face and love round frames? Go for it! Ultimately, your personality plays a huge role in how you’ll feel when you wear your frames. If you don’t love your frames, you won’t wear them.
Does Color Matter?
Even if you find the perfect frames, you might be stumped with color. At Stoggles, we have numerous color options so you can always fully customize your eyewear. If you’re having trouble deciding which color is best, we’ve got a choosing the best color guide for that, too.
Unwrap Your Style
We’d never steer you wrong, especially when it comes to eye care. We understand how important it is to take care of your vision and wear protective eyewear you can trust. We also understand that if eyewear doesn’t make you feel good about yourself, you aren’t going to wear it.
If wrap-around sunglasses give you out-of-this-world confidence, then consider them a viable (yet less protective) option. Otherwise, may we suggest eyewear that provides complete protection for both your vision and your style? Stoggles make it easy to stay safe and stylish.
That’s why we make sure Stoggles are as comfortable as they look. Because if you look good but don’t feel good, that must-have safety eyewear will end up lost in the junk drawer with those abandoned rubber bands and half-empty pens. Your specs can only protect you if you wear them. With Stoggles, you don’t need to make any hard decisions about safety vs. comfort vs. style — besides which color to wear today.
Sources:
ANSI/ISEA Z87.1-2020: Current Standard for Safety Glasses | ANSI
Photokeratitis: Treatment, Healing Time, Causes, Symptoms & Prevention | Cleveland Clinic
How blue light affects your eyes, sleep, and health | UC Davis