Glasses on the Cheap

grey titanium frames
Originally uploaded by jerobins.

This summer i'm having to deal with eye allergies (allergic conjunctivitis) for the first time in my life. I've been a contact lens wearer since middle school, but the last few months i have donned the head-wear to keep my sanity.

My last frames were bought with the idea that they would be worn very little and could serve as backups in the event of contact lens failure. I now realize that they are way to heavy for any kind of continuous wear.

I needed some new spectacles. Enter Glassy Eyes, a blog dedicated to online eyeglasses shopping information and reviews.

I had bookmarked (and tagged) the site last year when i ran across it in my web travels. Glad i did.

After doing my homework, i finally ordered a pair of eyeglasses from Zenni Optical.

Picking a frame was easy, they only had one metal frame that would fit my big head. Finding it was kind of difficult though as i had to use my browsers find in page to search for the size.

After picking the frame, selecting the high index lenses (anti-coke bottles please), adding anti-reflective coating and a pair of clip-on sunglasses and then punching in my prescription, the total came to about $90.

The verdict: not bad. The prescription seems fine. My only complaint about the glasses is that the anti-reflective coating is cheap.

The lack of buyer feedback would be my only other complaint. When you place the order you get a single confirmation email. There is no way to check on the order status. My glasses just showed up in the mail a couple of weeks later.

They were packaged well. Glasses wrapped in microfiber cloth, placed in a hard case with clip-ons placed on top and stuck in a 5x8 bubble-wrap mailer.

I don't think buying eyeglasses online is for everyone...yet, but i would certainly recommend it. $90 versus $300 or $400? Wouldn't you consider it?

Just be sure to check-out the reviews, i believe there are other sites that are doing a better job in the quality control department.