For the past few days, I've been obsessively checking the mailbox everyday for the arrival of my new glasses. Eye glasses have always been the subject of an incredibly intense love/hate relationship.
I absolutely adore the aesthetic idea of a great pair of glasses and remember purposefully reading with really poor lighting when I was younger in hopes of weakening my eyes. In high school, I had a fake pair of plastic black framed ones that I wore constantly until a) they became ubiquitous b) I realized how horrifying they made me look.
In college, my eyes finally succumbed and I was diagnosed as a little short sighted, enough to warrant my first pair. Unfortunately, the pair I really wanted was from Oliver Peoples (translation: =$$$$) and in a hurry because my mom was waiting to make Thanksgiving dinner, I chose a pair of Ralph Lauren glasses that ended up being the bane of my existence. I still remember receiving them in the mail at Mizzou, trying them on, and being absolutely horrified.
Since then, eyewear and I have been had an uneasy relationship. Nothing makes me look super "Asian" and disfigures my face quicker than a pair of unflattering glasses, which unfortunately happens to be most glasses. I don't really have a face for them, truth be told, and I even avoided sunglasses until very recently because I think they make me look pissed off (via eyebrow juxtapositioning).
While in New York, I found a pair of gorgeous titanium ones at a sample sale for $50. It was perhaps my greatest find so of course I lost them promptly in Central Park. Since then, I've been without a pair, despite my eyes getting worse and worse.
Finally, with my parents' insurance running out in November, I've gone on an eyeglass hunt. I've found several pairs that I really love, but of course they're always really expensive. I can't justify spending too much money on a pair. I finally found a pair in Lawrence that were perfect, but a little too small. Despairing, I've taken to ordering online.
I subscribe less to the trendy-cool genre of mediocre glasses found on so many hipsters and more to the nebbish, New York intellectual aesthetic. Therefore, Moscot made perfect sense despite hesitations about ordering a pair off the internet.
Moscot is a Jewish optometrist in New York with a long history and an even longer list of celebrity clients that include John Lennon and Johnny Depp. All of their glasses are named after family members and have that really great Woody Allen-esque chic to them. They're not annoying like many of the black framed glasses out there because not only do they have history and authenticity on their side, but their frames, I think, are more interesting, have personality, and are of better quality.
Here are a few of my favorites:
The Lemtosh
The Nebb
The Nebb SE
The Zelig
Gorgeous, right? I was originally going to purchase the Zelig, but like all of Moscot's older frames, it was too small for me. So instead, I went with their newer line of modern reinterpretations and ordered the Yale.
I've always wanted a pair of tortoise shell glasses so these seemed rather perfect. I have to admit that the black Yales are even better looking online, but there was no giving up on my tortoise-centered dreams. Here's hoping they look okay! Otherwise, it's back to the eyewear store for me!
Pajama sets usually make me think of fifties Hollywood, but not usually in a wearable way. However, I've become completely obsessed with these pjs from J.Crew. The piping is to die for. I'd love a cream linen set with navy piping and my initials monogrammed. It's more French than Cary Grant. It's Jane Birkin waking up in the morning, throwing on the pajama shirt, and sitting on the balcony and smoking. When I spotted this image of Claude Chabrol in his personal best, it all made sense. I still don't know if I can personally pull them off, but don't they look great?
image from here.
photo from here.
However, the read was a little too trashy for even me - halfway through the book and our trip, I've dropping it off at the lounge for some intrepid traveler. As for me, I'll stick to the movie.
I'm normally resistant to contemporary literature from unknown authors - I like to know that my time is being well-spent. But I was in a hurry, nothing else caught my eye, it looked like it might keep me through my entire journey, and... hey, why not? The cover, at least, is fantastic. And for $18, it was a positive steal compared to whatever awful Nathaniel Hawthorne novel I might've picked up in Taiwan instead.
Signing off!
The Zelig
I've always wanted a pair of tortoise shell glasses so these seemed rather perfect. I have to admit that the black Yales are even better looking online, but there was no giving up on my tortoise-centered dreams. Here's hoping they look okay! Otherwise, it's back to the eyewear store for me!
