Manon Isabella shares her insight on what could be the popular trends in eyewear for 2016
The new year brings fresh eyewear trends to dazzle your attire. 2016 says, flaunt dauntlessly the lovely, surreal eyewear brought to you by the many brands from this industry. The Spring/Summer 2016 Eyewear Collections are highlighting the focus on remodelling existing shapes and innovating to create new options. This, coupled with the different shades available will ensure that there is a diverse range of designs to choose from.
Moving on, let’s take a look at some amazing patterns, stunning shapes and appealing colours that are likely to emerge as the trendsetters of 2016.
Geometric & Graphical
You may not have loved geometry in mathematics class where it is all about the position of figures, questions of shape, size and the property of space but our favourite geometric eyewear will make you rethink your thoughts about geometry.
As of now, geometric and graphical frames look like one of the most promising trends of 2016. In fashion geometric items are taken to another level and are mostly worn as a statement. You can go for a clean and polished look with metallic tones or opt for a more modern almost a futuristic look where you wear bold frames and a pop of colour blocking.
Geometric frames look very nice on most face shapes, they may not look the best on a square face shape as they exaggerate their stronger jawbones.
You can find interesting options in geometric frames by Burberry, Dior, Miu Miu and Prada. For instance, the Miu Miu Noir Collection consists of an impressive hexagon frame shape with antique temple design and beautiful animal prints that make it a truly sophisticated style statement. Dior also has some interesting options in its portfolio including the latest holiday season offering-the DIORREFLECTED sunglasses. With strong mirrored lenses and a contrasting metal pantos-shaped frame and brow bar DIORREFLECTED makes for a subtle but stylish look for the holiday season. It is a classic shape with a hybrid of vintage and modern twists, thanks to the architectural aspects of the frame and materials used. When it comes to geometric shapes, there is a large fan following in celebrities as well with stars like Rihanna, Kim Kardashian and Olivia Palermo sporting the style from time to time.
Moving on to the graphical frames, even though they have been in fashion for a few seasons, they are now emerging as an absolute all-time favourite. The most used shapes for graphical frames are; square, oval, round and triangle. Graphical frames are more popular for the sporty look but can also be very classy as there are loads of options in this category. Here again, the celebrity fan following includes names like Kanye West, Ben Affleck and Jennifer Lopez. Valentino has some good graphical frames in its Maskaviator Collection. The unique frame shape is beautifully complemented by the colour options. For the sportive look in graphical frames, Kenzo is a good choice and for the classy options, you can check out the styles offered by Vera Wang. However, there are other brands like Gotti, Ray-Ban, Sama and many more that also have interesting options in this category.
Wayfarer & Aviators
Wayfarers and aviators will continue to rule the roost in 2016 as well. Gorgeous aviators are what you will see all around you, from the futuristic Chanel pieces with the engraved frameless designs to the crescendo effects of the Acne sunglasses. Originating in the ’50 s & ’60 s, these styles made their comeback in the ’80 s and are now here to stay for a very long time we reckon. In fact, they have been the most selling and popular sunglasses in history. Ray-Ban is an all-time favorite when it comes to wayfarer sunglasses and their latest spring summer collection only takes the benchmark one step higher. Don’t forget to check out the Dior Spring / Summer 2016 collection for some must-have wayfarer sunglasses of this season!
Round
A favorite for a lot of people out here, it’s classy, sophisticated and you can complete your whole look with just this 1 piece. Round sunglasses go back a long way; remember when John Lennon was seen wearing them at all his public appearances. From the gorgeous Chloe oversized round sunglasses to Rachel Zoe’s more vintage looks, there are so many brands to choose from in so many colors. The tribute to round sunglasses is incomplete without mentioning the classic round aviators by Gucci. Reminiscent of the vintage era, the Gucci aviators looks classy and are an excellent accessory for the fashion-conscious consumer.
Even Ray-Ban has some interesting options in the round category. For instance, the RB3532 brings back the iconic round shape. This sunglass features ultra-fine metal profiles & temples, coined details and a perfectly engineered folding mechanism for compact, resilient frames with a high quality finish and cool, in-the-know-style. Versatile metallic colors, including classic Arista gold and fine silver, offer passe-partout style suited to any occasion.
Creative
The creative shapes are quite new to the sunglasses trends but not to be missed these days.
Just when the world was getting comfortable with the traditional options, stalwarts like Prada and Dolce & Gabbana, went ahead to come up with the creative shapes. Needless to say, the creative shaped sunglasses are definitely eye-catchers!
ic!berlin’s ‘I See Exoskeleton’ collection also has some interesting options in this category. Featuring an intricate, scaffold-like construction, prominent oversized brow and innovative new 3D printed screwless hinge, ‘I see exoskeleton’ stands several notches above the mundane options due to its design. Instead of brackets and clips the temple connects to the front organically, forming a hinge that is smoother, stronger and easier to operate. The inspiration for this design comes from the molecular structure of the raw materials. To put it simply, the frame design is a magnified version of the molecular structure. For instance, the limited edition Agrumi Collection by D&G is characterised by the southern Italian countryside and comes with this precious stone embellishments. Even the Margherite collection inspired by the classic theme of ‘loves me, loves me not’ until the last petal has some really great choices.
For those who like bold options, there are plenty of models in the Mama’s brocade collection by D&G. Brocades, floral prints and Sicilian inspired detailing pay tribute to all mothers. The Mama’s Brocade Collection draws inspiration from the island of Sicily for a vintage effect. Frames with brocade detailing evoke the furnishings of Baroque Pallazi, in both the sophisticated embossed monochrome version and its floral cousin, decorated with a bouquet of red roses.
