Kickass Sunglasses You Need to be Wearing
Sunglasses are fashion staples of the summer season, but they are also convenience epitomized for people who travel for work or pleasure. Top-dollar sunglasses can hit the eye-popping $400,000 mark, but at that point, you might as well be Rafael Nadal sporting an $800,000 watch while serving match point. Down here in the non-celebrity world, you can still find kickass sunglasses for under $175 – if you know where to look.
1. Oakley
First, let’s talk about another pro that good sunglasses provide besides style: protecting you from UVA and UVB rays. Ever since grade school, we’re told that staying out in the sun too long can damage our skin or even cause skin cancer. But as adults, we might forget that excessive exposure to the sun also hurts our eyes, potentially bringing on cataracts or macular degeneration. So if you’re going to be outdoors a lot, consider going with the Oakley Fives Squared glasses, which offer a range of features: “wraparound frame design, three-point fit system, lightweight O-Matter frame material and unobtainium rubber.” Translation: They’re cool, solid, and perfect for hiking, camping, fishing or surfing. And best of all, they’re just $93.
2. Ray-Ban
But let’s say you’re not buying sunglasses just to shield your eyes from harmful rays. Instead, you’re creating a fashionable wardrobe. Check out the BSG blog or grooming services page for tips on how to pull it all together. Then match that look with the eyewear you want. The right specs will come down to the clothes you pick out and the haircut you get, but you could do worse than start with a line like #Ray-Ban, known for its Aviator and Wayfarer models (among others). GQ even named Ray-Ban as one of the top brands in an article on Aviators. The most expensive items on Ray-Ban’s retail line top out at about $4,000, but the Aviator Classics make our list because they’re priced at $153.
Keep in mind Your Face Shape
Maybe the simplest way of all to determine which sunglasses to get is just to look in the mirror. Match the sunglasses to the shape of your face. As Esquire points out, most men’s faces are hybrids of a number of categories. This is a good thing: the more categories you fit into, the greater your options.
If your facial structure is oblong – longer than it is wide, with a round jaw and cheekbones – almost any pair of sunglasses will look good on you, except for tear-shaped aviators that make your face look even longer. Esquire’s recommendation? The Carrera Retro Sunglasses at $159. If your face is more square, try a rounded lens to soften out that distinctive lantern jaw of yours. Warby Parker offers the “Durand” model with rounded lenses that do the trick. That’ll put you out $95. Quite the steal.
