Your glasses are one of the first things people notice, and your frames can make such a difference to your face shape, and your outfit.
It’s fun to be able to change up your glasses, for different occasions, but many of us don’t want to own multiple different frames. We just want one or two pairs that will be versatile for day or night. It all comes down to the frame’s shape, scale color and material.
Choose A Shape That Flatters Your Face
You need to start by working out your personal face shape, as this will affect how your glasses will balance your features.
To do this, hold a mirror at eye-level, and look at the widest points of your forehead, cheekbones and jawline.
If your face is round, pick frames with angular lines to add some contrast. Square/rectangular frames, and round frames with a subtle edge will make your face appear longer, and more structured.
If you have a square face, you can soften any strong angles with curved frames. Oval frames, or rimless frames work well as they follow your face’s natural contours.
Those with a heart-shaped face look best with frames that widen the lower face, so consider bottom-heavy styles, rounded frames or rimless frames.
Diamond shaped faces look best with frames that emphasize the eyes and soften their cheekbones. Oval and rimless frames complement diamond shaped faces really well.
Pick Neutral Colors That Pair With Everything
Neutral colors work as a “visual anchor” for your outfits, so choose frames that won’t fight with patterns or bright colors. For this, black, tortoiseshell, white and browns are super versatile colors, working with casual, formal or dressed up outfits.
Metallic frames (like rose gold, gold or silver) counts as neutrals too. Gold frames pair best with warm tones (beiges, creams and rusts), while silver complements cooler tones (blues, greys and blacks), whereas rose gold gives you the best of both worlds.
You can always keep one colorful or patterned set of frames, for when you want a pop of color.
Match Your Frames To Your Skin Undertone
If you know your skin’s undertone, it will help you work out which color of frame will suit you the best.
Look at your wrist veins, if they green toned, you have a warm undertone, blue toned, you have a cool undertone, and if you have a mix, you have a neutral undertone.
If you have warm undertones, choose frames with golden, brown, amber or tortoiseshell hues. They’ll echo your skin’s natural warmth, and will complement almost any outfit.
For cool undertones, go for blacks, grays, navy, cool tortoiseshells and jewel tones like emerald or sapphire.
For those with neutral undertones, you have the most flexibility, as you can opt for muted shades, translucent frames, and balanced two-tone designs all work very well.
Think About Matte Vs Glossy Finish
Matte frames give you a low-reflective, understated look, whereas glossy frames catch the light and can look a little more glam.
With matte frames, the matte finish hides fingerprints and small minor scratches, so your frames will look sleeker with daily wear.
Glossy finish frames highlight color and depth, and can make patterns pop. If you don’t like fingerprints, smears or dirty marks, you’re going to want to avoid glossy frames.
Some retailers give you the option to have the same frames, but in both a glossy and matte finish, so you could always get one of each, and just change them up with your outfits and looks.