Tailor-made eyewear isn’t the norm nowadays, but offers a personalised and innovative approach with endless options and design possibilities, writes Gladys Mak.
Eyewear is not only a functional tool for correcting vision, but also an expression of personal identity. The right pair of spectacles can enhance one’s features and make a statement to complement one’s style. However, finding the perfect pair of spectacles can be challenging. That’s where tailor-made eyewear comes in.
To learn more about the concept and process of tailor-made eyewear, we interviewed the founder and designer of Madebyavision, who has a wealth of experience in the industry and a passion for creating beautiful, functional, and meaningful glasses. The designer offers a personalised approach to frames that is as unique as each customer.
Most glasses are mass-produced and are designed to fit a standard model, which may not suit everyone’s needs or preferences. To create a one-of-a-kind design that reflects the customer’s personality and style, the designer offers a comprehensive consultation process incorporating various factors such as the customer’s face shape, skin tone, and wardrobe.
The process of creating tailor-made eyewear starts with a consultation with the customer, and taking precise measurements of their face, nose, and temples. Based on that, the frame is designed to fit the customer’s features and accentuate their best qualities. There are more than 200 different colours of premium acetate for customers to choose, which is harder, higher quality, and shinier than regular plastic. The customer can choose the colour, texture, and finishing of the acetate, including raw finishing for a textured and patterned look, or high polish for a shiny and smooth finish. There is an option to customise the detailing, such as diamond cutting, to add a touch of sophistication and individuality. The result of a tailor-made design is unique and only one in the whole world.
However, the process of creating tailor-made eyewear is not just about selecting options and materials. The biggest challenge in creating tailor-made eyewear is fully understanding the customer’s needs and expectations. As eyewear is a personal and emotional product, the consultation process requires a lot of communication and trust between the designer and the customer.
Therefore, the consultation process has to be customer-focused. Based on the customer’s input, adjustment of design applied on the front size and temple length ensures the perfect fit. The initial cutting of the front and temple is important to reconfirm the design with the customer. Despite the challenges, there’s great reward in creating glasses that reflect the customer’s individuality and style.
In conclusion, tailor-made eyewear is a personalised and innovative approach to frames that offers endless options and design possibilities. While the process of tailor-made eyewear may require more time and effort than buying off-the-shelf glasses, the rewards in terms of comfort, durability, and exclusivity are worth it. Tailor-made eyewear can be a transformational investment for customer engagement, optical dispensers, and optical practices.
Following the interview, I felt motivated to enhance my skills beyond my usual dispensing techniques by creating my own eyewear. In April, I participated in the “Make your own eyewear workshop” at Chris Savage’s Marrickville studio in Sydney, following the Optical Dispensers Australia (ODA) Conference. It was an enlightening experience to be guided through a step-by-step process to craft my own glasses. Possessing this specialised skill would be advantageous for an optical dispenser to expand their skill set and differentiate their service from other optical practices. I would recommend it to any optical dispenser who is interested in learning how to design their own frames.
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