Dubbed one of Brilliant Magazine’s “100 Most Important People in the Eyewear Industry,” designer Blake Kuwahara has announced the launch of his sophomore eyewear collection set for summer. The new line features eight new styles expanding on the designer’s concept of creating tension through the fusion of two different silhouettes. “My second release not only solidifies the concept but pushes the boundaries even further,” says the eyewear designer. “By creating an outer and inner silhouette, the design is defined by whether you focus on the outside, inside or on the whole frame. It creates a dynamic rather than a static look.” Each frame is handcrafted out of richly colored Italian and Japanese acetates and named after an iconic architect. Kuwahara is a CFDA member, with collaborated collections for John Varvatos and Coach, and his bold experimentation has gained him a strong following in both the fashion media and in Hollywood.
Kuwahara’s sophomore collection will be available this July.
From playing with K’NEX at age 9 to handcrafting luxury glasses today, the incredibly talented Wesley Knight has perfected the art of eyewear design in an impressively short amount of time. “I have always been tactical with my hands,” says the Texas-born, 25-year-old craftsman. “At 13, I discovered building with fabrics and learned to sew and crochet. My appetite for design and creating grew with age as my hands and eye developed.”
Image: Wesley Knight.
A philosophy major in college, Knight made his first pair of glasses for a class assignment. Completely self-taught, he used a method akin to the Socratic method, which allowed the learning artist to be fully immersed in the trial and error process. “I had to ask myself the right questions,” he explains. “I knew I needed patterns, I knew I needed to cut that pattern out, I knew I needed hinges, rivets, and horn … Slowly, I began problem solving in each of these arenas, until I had a functioning horn frame.” Eventually this experimentation would develop into an expanded exploration of eyewear design. When asked about his mentors, Knight mentions woodworker Debra Crane, college advisor George Grant, and his mother as people who have helped him throughout his creative journey. “I always valued her opinion. She would tell me if what I made was not what she knew I was capable of,” Knight says specifically of his mother. “I think this is where my uncompromising standards in craft began to develop.”
Image: Wesley Knight.
After finishing school in Nashville, Tennessee, the Southern craftsman went on to establish his very own eyewear brand and quickly found success due to his unique process—which stems from the close relationship between a client and a creative—and unique pieces. Knight’s first step in his work involves an exchange of ideas and wishes from the wearer. Naturally it is a very intimate experience, but it is also his favorite and most rewarding part of the job, “My greatest joy comes from the multifaceted relationships with my clients as we create a functional object that empowers them,” he says. “I especially love hearing what inspires them because this information will help me create an even more beautiful piece.”
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My appetite for design and creating grew with age as my hands and eye developed.
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With the use of tools he created himself, Knight measures the individual’s face and ears to make a pattern, recording their facial structure specifications. He recalls his most memorable client experience being with his very first customer: “I’ll never forget the overwhelming emotions after my very first fitting with Harlin Sadler,” Knight says thinking back. “His commission spoke life into my passion and future as an artist and creator. I am forever grateful for his investment.” After discerning the needs of his customer, the young craftsman then begins the sketching stage, “I keep the room dark with the exception of my drafting desk, and usually turn on a favorite piece by Philip Glass,” he says. “Sometimes I have a shape pre-imagined in my head and other times I simply start sketching and find inspiration from the contours of my client’s face.” Once his design is approved, Knight then spends upwards of 40 hours of dedicated and detailed work cutting, assembling, and polishing the piece all while ensuring the most complimentary and comfortable frame possible.
Image: Wesley Knight.
The result is a beautiful pair of personalized glasses from the finest materials to last a lifetime with a strong water buffalo horn frame; not just a personalized pair of glasses, but a unique experience that inspires wonder and thoughts of ditching mass-produced branded frames for the lavish oddity. Glimpsing into the future, the bespoke designer sees his brand expanding beyond eyewear. He smiles, “As I grow as an artist and craftsman, I will begin to reach into new realms of inspiration.”
Today powerhouse Italian brand Gucci and recording artist of Black Eyed Peas fame, will.i.am, announced a special partnership that aims to tie interaction and time with wearable technology at watch and jewelry summit Baselworld 2015. Powered by i.am+, the musician’s entrepreneurial entity—which made its eyewear debut last fall—the groups have come together to reveal a completely stand alone smart band that, independent from any smartphone, will be able to send and receive calls, text messages, emails, and other data, working as a sophisticated voice assistant. President and CEO of Gucci Timepieces Stéphane Linder said,“Today, through this innovative collaboration with i.am+ and will.i.am, Gucci Timepieces is fully embracing the future of wearable technology that is now ahead of us, with the objective of launching a wearable device concept that is a fashion accessory, incorporating the most comprehensive and advanced technological functionalities.“
Squinting while reading the morning paper? Not a pretty sight. Fellow four-eyed friends who haven’t heard of Shwood will quickly fall in love with the unique eyewear made from beautiful woods that have been sustainably harvested from across the globe. Earlier this week, the Portland-based brand unveiled its latest project entitled The Newspaper Collection, a new material experiment involving the transformation, reconstruction, and repurposing with the goal of returning paper to something more similar to its original state. For the new line, newsprint is first wound up into a “log,” which is then sawn into thin plies to reveal a unique, wood-like texture. The finished product is a pair of one-of-a-kind luxury sunglasses. The dense lines, swirling grain, and barely-there text make each pair truly stand out.
The Newspaper Collection includes three different versions of the brand’s signature wayfarer-shaped Canby frame. The Fifty/Fifty Acetate and Wood Original styles both feature newspaper temple inlays and are available in sun and optical frames, while the Wood Select style features a full-frame layer of the unique material.
American eyewear brand Warby Parker debuts its new Concentric Collection, which sees three new styles—as well as an exciting new color—joining the brand’s repertoire of eyeglasses and shades. The eyewear collection is named after the specialized process used to craft the new offerings, in which two hues are repeatedly pressed together to create a ring of color around the lenses, inspired by the festive warmth of the season. The collection is available online and at Warby Parker stores as of today, Tuesday December 9, 2014, and starts at $145 per frame.
To celebrate the brand’s 80-year-legacy, the optic crafters at Safilo introduce a new capsule collection under the creative eye of famed industrial designer Marc Newson. Consisting of five optical frames and two sunglasses, the project uses state-of-the-art components—ultra-lightweight Optyl (a trademark registered by Safilo), revolutionary Elasta 80 hinge, ultra-thin steel wire, aluminum, and a steel integrated new hinge—to reinterpret traditional eyewear into the modern world. The design for the line itself is very much a nod to the roots of the Italian brand, using fluid lines and organic silhouettes based off shapes from Safilo’s archives.
Image: Safilo.
“For a designer, collaborating with such an iconic brand as Safilo, with its strong DNA and history of excellence presents an extraordinary opportunity to explore new stylistic directions, combining the heritage of the brand with a fresh and innovative perspective. I enjoy teaming up with this large professional company that is properly industrialized and disciplined in the process of bringing the product to market, as well as a true expert in craftsmanship. At the end of the day they want the product out there as swiftly as I do,” said Newson of the collaboration.
Safilo by Marc Newson is available for purchase at international Safilo retailers.
Exciting news from our friends at Burberry in the form of eyewear launching today. So settle in and get acquainted with Burberry Spark, a collection of sunglasses and optical frames that were made specifically to compliment the metallic-meets-iconic theme of their Spring 2013 ready to wear. The sunnies come in streamlined, two toned “Wayfarer” styles, shaded in colors like metallic blue, metallic plum and kelly greens which you saw on the Burberry runway for Spring. The classic aviators are like shaded, feature tonal lenses and are foldable. The optical (not for sale online yet, but will be soon) are distinctly Burberry with the house check featured on the temple, fading into some nicely colored earpieces attached to nice, masculine square frames. In Burberry fashion, the Spark campaign, shot in London and curated by Burberry Chief Creative Officer Christopher Bailey, celebrates emerging British music talent with bands Coastal Cities, Broken Hands, and The Night V1. We’ve got exclusive images of the optical, extended cut videos of the campaign and some special behind the scenes shots just after the jump.
Rounding off a few of Damir Doma’s Fall 2013 runway looks were some delectable, circular pieces of eyewear. The glasses are a collaboration between Damir Doma and tech-savvy Mykita—the second such. They play on spheroid aesthetics as well as contrasting materials and colors. The result embodies the insouciant elegance that permeated the Damir Doma Fall 2013 runway. Simply called the DD02 and DD03, both will be available at Mytika shops, the Damir Doma flagship and selected optical/fashion outlest as sunglasses or prescription frames and will be fitted with lenses from the fine people at ZEISS. Runway and product shots in the blink of an eye, right this way…
The DD02 model has circular lenses with stunning colour combinations: silver or black stainless steel coupled with bottle-green Peridot, translucent amethyst, ruby red ruby, shiny black and crystal-clear limpid for the frames, accompanied by grey, brown or green lenses. The marriage of clear acetate with green lenses creates the optical illusion of the latter floating freely inside the frame.
In the DD03 model the signature rings are linked via an extra bridge that at the same time serves as a styling element stressing the frame’s sporty credentials. The rings, visible from both sides, are again made from acetate and linked by a polished stainless-steel frame. The sleek and straight temples are a modern reference to the vintage look of the early 1930s. DD03 comes in the colour combinations black or silver with transparent limpid, ruby red, peridot or amethyst with green, grey, brown and black lenses.
A closer look at those shades on the runway at last week’s Thom Browne show in Paris. The eyewear is handmade in Japan using titanium. The model you’re looking at— TB-900— will be offered in three color options; shiny silver, black iron, and black iron with 12K gold. Clearly. Each will come equipped with clear anti-reflective coated lenses and signature temple tips. The style will retail for $550 when they become available this May. More images after the jump.
It’s not that hard to correlate sunglasses with driving. Especially in the US—and not just for the, er, glaringly obvious reason of wanting to keep the sun out of your eyes. Think about it: the US congress began the process of creating a standard set of standardized, interconnected highways back in 1925 (the first country on Earth to do so) and then in 1929 the first every commercially sold sunglasses showed up at the Jersey Shore (at Woolworth in Atlantic City by the Foster Grand Company). Ok, so there’s no empirical evidence directly connecting the two, but there’s a glimmer of something related, right? More roads, increased driving, a lot of people needing to deal with the sun in their face? Anyway, cut to now with the Ralph Lauren Eyewear Automotive Collection. You already know the man’s been in the eyewear game for a while (we’re typing this through lenses affixed to a pair we bought at least 5 years ago and still love), but the brand new automotive collection was made specifically with the man’s personal favorite in mind—the gorgeous Bugatti Type 57SC Atlantic Coupé, which was made between 1934 and 1940, just before the age of highways shifted into high gear. Check out the details after the jump.
An elegant, classic frame with an iconic shape, this aviator style features details such as steel frames offset by wood-effect acetate at the temples, screws in metal alloy mirroring those on the Bugatti, and a double bridge. The palette ranges from shiny silver or shiny black with vintage root-wood temples, matte silver with racing green temples, and matte black. Also available with mirror and polar lenses.
Featuring a distinctive shield and screws in metal alloy—reflecting those found in the Bugatti—hand-applied leather framework, and temples with wood-effect acetate, this style is perfect for the auto-enthusiast. Available with mirrored lenses and in a range of colors including leather and silver with leather temples, racing green leather and silver with JL havana vintage finish temple, and black leather and matte black with vintage root-wood temples.
Combining special technical mechanisms and exclusive details in both functionality and style, this frame embodies a unique Ralph Lauren masterpiece conceived particularly for drivers. This innovative pilot frame is made in metal alloy with several features: sun lenses that flip-up like a car sun-visor, detachable optical lenses that can be placed behind the sun front, screws in metal alloy and temples in our unique wood-effect acetate. For added elegance, this special edition style comes complete with its own case designed specifically for the frames. Also available with mirrored and polar lenses, this style presents a shiny silver or matte black front with root-wood vintage finish temples and a shiny black front with vintage black temples.
This iconic yet contemporary square frame design is enhanced by the use of unusual materials, such as Ralph Lauren’s wood-effect acetate, inspired by the precious materials found in the interior of the Bugatti Type 57SC Atlantic Coupé. The frame includes details such as decorative screws on the temple inspired by those found on the exterior of the Bugatti. The palette offers a selection of colors ranging from shiny black with root-wood vintage finish temples, to matte black and JL havana.
These sleek aviators with exclusive wood-effect acetate embody the spirit of Ralph Lauren’s Automotive Collection. Unique features of this sun style include the decorative screws and rivets applied on the front, inspired by the car body design of the Bugatti Type 57SC Atlantic Coupé. The Ralph Lauren logo is applied under the varnish on the outside of the temple. Available with full color lenses and in a range of colors including shiny black with root-wood vintage finish temples, matte black, JL havana and root-wood vintage finish with black vintage finish temples.
Images from YSL’s drool worthy Spring/Summer 2012 capsule collection have made their way to our inbox a month before they’ll hit store shelves. Not available until May, the collection features original and acutely modern takes on classic styles in multi-layered acetate that feature new colors combinations developed exclusively for this collection.
Italian sportswear brand Stone Island, known for its technological innovation in fabrication (and sussing up more than a few soccer, er football fans), is all set to launch their first line of sunglasses. (More details after the jump)
And Stone Island doesn’t disappoint. 100% carbon fibre rims and unexpected egg-shaped frames give the glasses both a fresh and classic appeal all at once. Hitting shelves in April, they’ll be available in black, green, blue and red, all of which were created by using coloured pigments suspended in transparent resin, to the awesome effect of leaving the texture of the carbon fibre visible.
