New Glasses

Just call me four-eyes. I've needed vision correction for about 11 years now, and after a brief stint with contacts, I made the switch back to glasses a few years ago. It was a good choice except that I am horrible at picking out a pair that looks good on me. Because of that, I've always chosen very simple, tortoise-shell frames.


My last pair of glasses came from Wal-Mart, and while they fit my style idiom, I was not satisfied at all with the quality or price. I have fairly decent vision insurance, but Wal-Mart does not have a decent selection, at least not for people with the same face shape as me. I knew I wanted new glasses but there was no coverage for new ones until sometime in 2009. And I am not a patient person.


So I lost those glasses. Not on purpose, though my husband might disagree. They fell out of my bag while we were playing at Disney recently. I felt bad, but not too bad. Now that I needed a new pair, I could finally use that cool $8 glasses site I had read about on so many other frugal blogs - Zenni Optical.



After browsing there varied options I finally settled on these. They are definitely more funky than I am accustomed to, but I love them! I spent less than $40, including the lenses. The quality is higher than the Wal-Mart pair I purchased for $70 and I was able to have the anti-reflective coating added for less than $5. Notice, there is no glare on the lenses in the picture of me above... pretty cool isn't it?


The only downside for me, not having any back-up glasses, was that I had to wait for the glasses to be shipped. This didn't bode well with my impatient side. However the wait was worth it. I have a simple prescription and it isn't too strong, so it took about 2 weeks for the glasses to make it to me. They came in a simple hard, plastic case with a grey microfiber cloth for cleaning.


My new eyes have received several compliments and I upped my funky factor! So many want to know where I got my new eyes and am I thrilled to recommend Zenni Optical to all of them, and to all of you! I'm even going to order another pair with tinting (an extra $5) to use as sunglasses.


I think Zenni Optical is a great option for anyone who might need a back-up pair of glasses, such as an over the road truck driver, an editor, or just someone who misplaces things a lot. Even those who work in the construction trades can have low-cost safety goggles made-up with their prescription.

If you are fashion-forward, don't worry. They carry rimless glasses, hingeless glasses, and designs that push the leading edge of designs.


And finally, for my frugal readers... eyeglasses start at only $8!