Historically vision correction was a necessity to those who could afford it, but now it is a must-have fashion accessory, worn by many people who don’t even require a prescription lens in the frame!

How such a huge transition came about is truly remarkable, and goes hand in hand with the rise of the celebrity culture throughout the 20th century.

The Beginning

Glasses began to make their first appearance as a fashion accessory around the turn of the 20th Century. The first examples of iconic eyewear are seen through the aristocratic Victorians – the men wore their monocles and the women carried their lorgnettes as a symbol of their status.

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The post Great War boom and the birth of Hollywood in the 1920s saw the rise of wide-spread consumerism, film distribution and celebrity culture…and the start of revolutionary fashion changes.

Icons

Marilyn Monroe

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Icons such as Marilyn Monroe rewrote the rulebook when it came to cutting edge fashion. From her provocative dresses to her bold hair and makeup, she embodied the look set for an entire era – and her eye fashion was no different.

She wore the famous ‘cat’s eye glasses’ that have become synonymous with the 1950s – and feature in movies set in the decade like Grease starring John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John.

John Lennon

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One of the greatest icons of all time, Lennon’s music continues to have a huge influence on musicians today who draw inspiration from his lyrics and melodies. Though it may never have been his intention, he also became a huge inspiration for men’s fashion.

Lennon’s glasses were almost as famous as his beliefs and activism, and the circular frames have become associated with the whole ‘70s ‘hippy movement’.

The round frame design seen on Lennon in the ‘70s was also the style of choice for Elton John and famous rocker Ozzy Osborne…and later worn by fictional character Harry Potter!

Napoleon Dynamite

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He may be a character of fiction but his glasses legacy is real. A fashion trend that is often overlooked (possibly because, looking back, nobody can understand how it was ever trendy) the over sized glasses were worn alongside big perms, too-big jumpers and leggings in the ‘80s.

Like all other fashion trends these have been recycled a few decades down the line, and have reappeared in the form of sunglasses. Oversized sunglasses were first seen on the likes of Nicole Richie and Paris Hilton on their series The Simple Life, and are now a common summer fashion commodity.

Austin Powers

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The big heavy framed glasses seen on Mike Myers while playing ‘60’s ‘sex symbol’ in satirical movie Austin Powers were probably the only desirable thing about him.

Chunky rectangular frames have become synonymous with the ‘geek chic’ fashion of the 21st Century and are the hottest in the market at the minute.

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More recent trends have seen celebrities adding ‘bling’ to their glasses, such as Kanye West’s famous shutter glasses. But with the fickle nature of fashion today, who knows what will be the next big trend… I’m sure the designers will look back to the icons for inspiration.

Steph loves to blog about fashion, and has a particular interest in eye fashion. She loves to look at the ways that fashion has evolved over the years. She writes for Lenstore, an online contact lens retailer that sells popular brands such as Focus Dailies.

The post Famous Icons and Their Famous Glasses appeared first on Fashion and Lifestyle Trends for Men & Women.

However, glasses have come a long way since then and they are now regarded by many as the ultimate fashion accessory. Glasses are available in colours to suit all tastes and the choice of frames on offer is staggering. Recently, it’s all been about the ‘Geek chic’ style – large, thick black rimmed specs – similar to those sported by everyone’s favourite flamboyant stylist Gok Wan. Gok has even released his own collection of glasses and sunglasses which are proving to be a real hit. The latest style of glasses to hit the High Street is the ‘John Lennon’ – that is, small round glasses, similar to those sported by the former member of The Beatles.

For celebrities and fictional characters, glasses are an essential accessory

However, it’s not just Gok whose specs are an essential part of his image. Going back a few decades, renowned Brits, Eric Morcambe, Spike Milligan and comic duo, The Two Ronnies were synonymous with oversized black glasses. Moving forward, musician and conductor of the Military Wives choir, Gareth Malone completes his Geek Chic look with a pair of black rimmed glasses, television presenter, and as for Ozzie Osbourne and Dame Edna Everage, the defence rests.

Let’s not leave the Hollywood A-listers out of the equation. So many of them are embracing the glasses revolution and using them to add a new dimension to their look. Jonny Depp was recently photographed looking very dashing in a pair of round, tortoise shell glasses and Elton John has been known to wear some rather unique looking glasses to add a bit more sparkle, to his already bold look.

For fictional characters too, glasses have been an essential part of their image. Ugly Betty, is renowned for her signature bookish black glasses and braces, The Milky Bar Kid wouldn’t look quite the same without his dorky blue glasses. Harry Potter was never without his round glasses, for ‘Where’s Wally’, his ‘John Lennon’ style glasses really completed his geeky image and CSI Miami’s Horatio is normally sporting a pair of super cool shades.

So there’s certainly more than what meets the eye when it comes to glasses.

From unsightly frames to aid vision, they are now the ultimate fashion accessory and are used by celebs, fictional characters and ordinary people like you and me to achieve a unique and trendy look.

Sean writes about fashion for designer glasses retailer Direct Sight.

The post Are People Finally Seeing Glasses Differently? appeared first on Fashion and Lifestyle Trends for Men & Women.