Awesome Eyeglasses

Have you ever wondered how they make prescription eyeglass lenses fit the frame you picked out? Colin Birkman from Precision Optics Eyewear shows how a special machine traces and scans the inside shape of the frames, then sends that data to another machine precisely cuts lenses to the right size to pop into the holes.

G1 glasses look and feel almost like traditional eyeglasses, but they’re lightweight smart glasses with an array of simple yet practical tools. A pair of tiny projectors display a monochrome interface to show navigation, live translation, note-taking, a teleprompter, and quick access to an AI assistant. Check out Jon Rettinger’s hands-on for more.

Sick of the hinges on your glasses breaking and rendering your otherwise beloved frame useless? Better hope Paul Cohen’s one-off creation catches on. The product designer made eyeglasses for himself where the arms attach to the rest of the frame using magnets instead of hinges. The arms easily come off, allowing its case to stay compact.

Coffee grounds aren’t easy to dispose of in an eco-friendly way. A startup in Kyiv, Ukraine, came up with a clever use for the waste – eyeglass frames. Business Insider shows us how OCHIS combine the grounds with plant oils and other sustainable elements, presses them until solid, then cuts them into eyeglass parts.

The Hamster Miniature Studio 2 aka HMS2 specializes in making really tiny objects. In this video, they decided to build a tiny pair of eyeglasses. They have see-through lenses, and are hinged so they can fold. If our action figures ever have a vision problem, we know where to turn.

Readerest’s tiny magnetic holder secures your eyewear to your clothes. Even if you forget that you put them there, the strong magnets will make sure that your glasses stay put. You can also use them to hang IDs, earphones and other slim objects.

ROAV’s incredibly thin and stylish sunglasses fit just about anywhere, thanks to their lightweight sheet metal frames and unique micro-spring hinges. They’re screwless, and adapt to the size of each wearer’s head for a comfortably snug fit. They release fresh designs monthly.

YouTuber How to Make Everything’s latest project is a pair of prescription glasses. While gathering the raw materials needed for them is surprisingly easy, processing those materials is incredibly hard and time-consuming. Especially if you go it blind.

Most sunglasses and even prescription glasses are manufactured, sold and even prescribed by people who work for just one company – Luxottica. As one would expect from a near-monopoly, Luxottica jacks up prices and stifles or outright buys out its competitors.

Fello offers designer quality sunglasses for half the price. They come with an unbelievable warranty; if anything happens to them, they’ll replace them for free. Fello also gives back with each pair, working with a charity that helps provide vital eye care in developing countries.

Shwood’s limited-edition Newspaper collection eyewear is made by pressing and gluing layers of recycled newsprint into wood-like logs, then cutting them into eyeglass shapes. Available in sunglass and RX models.

Spine’s unique high-tech hinges use a micro-injected metal which allows them to flex and adapt to any size or shape head, while providing a comfortable and firm fit. Available in several frame designs, both for optical and sunglasses.

Shwood teamed up with Louisville Slugger to create these awesome limited-edition shades that are perfect for a sunny day at the ballpark. They’re made from reclaimed ash wood from old and broken baseball bats.

Hungary’s Tipton Eyeworks upcycles old vinyl records into stylish eyewear with a unique and “groovy” texture. Each is hand-assembled using laser-cut vinyl, and comes in a matching case made from an old 45.

EXOvault’s Kingsland eyeglasses have solid aluminum frames. You can order just the frames or with non-prescription lenses installed. Available in silver and black; more colors and plating options coming soon.

Simple functionality and a low-key design make ION optical and sun smartglasses a great idea. Customizable LED lights in the frame provide notifications while bluetooth capability allows you to control a smartphone or tablet remotely.