I was inspired to write this by Enya of (@EJMfashion) when she requested she mention me in a blog post, as well as my good Twitter friend, Sharon (@SharonAWilliams) who was surprised I had not yet blogged about sunglasses knowing my affixation with them!
I remember my first love of sunglasses came around when I was 16. We were off on what was deemed to be our last family holiday (it wasn't!) and I wanted some fitting glasses for the occasion. I trolled off to John Lewis in town accompanied by the parents. Frilly Gilly (My Mum!) got really involved in the selection, whilst Pete The Neat (My Dad!) couldn't have been any less interested! I remember I opted for some large black Ted Lapidus sunglasses and parted with my £59 cash.
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| Ted Lapidus |
On reflection, they were too old for me. I am however pretty gutted I have no idea where they are now, as they are being sold for around £250!
My love of sunglasses has clearly continued until this day. They jazz up an outfit. Hide a hangover. Create some Je Ne Sais Quoi mystique and are altogether sexy.
So here I have my collection of sunglasses from the last 15 years - I think!
I remember being quite into Moschino from a young-ish age (not that I bought anything then you understand!). I loved their quirky designs, so when I saw these sunglasses with hearts on the frame, I clearly had to have them. I purchased them from J C Bird on Surrey Street in Sheffield - a long standing Sheffield opthalmic institution.
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| Moschino Heart Rimmed Sunglasses - purchased circa 1998 |
Now clearly, the John Lennon-esque sunnies were the rage, as I am normally a Big Glasses Gal!
Moving onto the black plastic Gucci's...
When I opened the box to reveal these glasses tonight, my first reaction was "OMG!" I had actually forgotten I had bought these glasses, and more surprisingly that I still had them given my militant throwing out tendencies!
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| Black Plastic Gucci - Sunglass Hut - bought 2001 |
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I bought these when I worked in Lakeside - for my sins! It was a retail graduate training programme with the world's worst retailer! So I needed to shop to keep sane!
Anyway, Sunglass Hut was conveniently located outside my store, so needless to say I spent many months coveting these sunnies and speaking to the manager. When it came to the purchase, I negotiated a 30% discount, so paid around £75, instead of the usual £100 or so. You'll see this price negotiation becomes a pattern!
With the next pair below, you can see bigger sunnies were coming into fashion.
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| Dolce & Gabbana - purchased from EyeFinity circa 2003 |
I loved these glasses as they were plain and black and big - well 9 years ago they were considered big. You'll not be surprised to learn I bought (and wore!) these on a cold, dark and rainy January day! This was the 1st non-hard flexible semi-circle case I had seen. I loved it! As they are quite a wrap-around design, I now just wear these for running. How fly!
I then seemed to move onto Chanel around 2003/4!
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| Chanel Sunglasses with Diamante Double C Detail |
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| Bought around 2003 |
Now to call these "sun" glasses would be pushing it! As you can see (you see what I did there?!), they are clear. They do no shielding from the sun - whatsoever! I did love these though due to the sparkle. I have no idea where I bought these from, but remember paying around £150.
I then stuck with the Chanel theme for my next pair.
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| Chanel Blue tinted lenses with Mother of Pearl Double C logo |
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| Bought from J C Bird circa 2005 |
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| Worn for my Middle Sis' wedding, Sydney 2006 |
Once again, these sunnies look the business, with their graduated blue tint lenses. They are very sexy, but as for shielding the sun, they are not the best! I had my eye on these for a while. My dad was doing a kitchen for the aforementioned J C Bird, so I ensured he negotiated these glasses into the deal around 2005! They were £160 full price. We got them for £80. Dad paid half, so cost me £40! Bargain!
Now after buying a few pairs of sunglasses that did not really keep the sun out, I thought I better buy some that did do the job!
Bulgari seemed to launch onto the market around this time. I clearly thought all my birthdays had come at once with all the diamante detail. Right. Up. My. Street. Total magpie!
I remember thinking I was going to treat myself to these with my 1st pay packet in my new job - March 2008. So off I went to Manchester to looksee.
I umm'd and ahhh'd, dragging my sis into the shop with me, wondering if they were too big, but having a big fat moon face, large glasses suited me, especially those ones with a squarer edge to counteract the roundness of my face.
So I decided upon these.
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| Bulgari Black 8016-B |
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| Mucho bling! |
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| As worn in Miami 2011 |
Now as my sis worked in HNs, it would have been rude not to make the most of the discount right?! HNs run a lot of events, so I went with my older sister to see my middle sister to see what was on offer! I don't know whether you noticed, but I did not have any brown sunglasses in my collection, so clearly needed to rectify said oversight! Over-sight?! Geddit?!
HNs had this Lucky Dip event where folded paper with % discounts were in a bowl, and after you'd decided upon your purchase, you delved in to select one with a discount of up to 50% off. I think I got 20 or 30% off, so paid less than £200 for these in 2010.
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| Bulgari Brown 8058B |
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| Side view with bling! Hint of Tortoiseshell on the frames. |
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| As worn in Greece at The Acropolis 2010 |
During my most recent jaunt to London, I found myself in Selfridges! I have absolutely no idea how!
I browsed the sunglasses department, as I always do and came across some Victoria Beckham aviators. Now, I must have tried on 4,000 pairs of aviator sunglasses in the vain hope that some, somewhere, somehow will suit my face! AND THESE WERE THEM!
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| Victoria Beckham 0052 Aviators |
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| Graduated Blue Tinted Lens |
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| Love the pointed and spring hinged arms |
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| As modelled upon request from Twitter! |
I was not however wanting to part with £275 on what was already an expensive weekend away. So I was going to ask my friend, who works at Selfridges, to get them for me.
But there was no need for that! As the wonderful Selina (@mrs_monkeycat) tweeted me to say they had come into The Outnet that day! WITH A WHOPPING 64% off! So I got my credit card out faster than you could say SPF15! So I paid £119 for these bad boys!
I love these sunnies as they are cool and funky, when I normally go for glam! I love the gold grills, they just make them different! They are perfect to accessorize a more casual outfit.
Now as you may expect, I have my eye on some more sunnies! When I spotted these VB ones in Selfridges, I also spotted some Bulgaris. I love my bling ones, but wanted some more simpler ones.
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| Bulgari Black 6037B |
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| Just a little bit of bling - I cannot help myself! |
I won't pay full price! Will only get them if my friend can get me discount or if they go on sale!
I hope you've enjoyed My Sunglasses Journey! I must admit, it has been quite a journey for me with all the memories!
What are you like sunglasses-wise? What style are you coveting currently?
Would love to hear your thoughts!
Sunnilicious love!
Kate xxx
