Retro Sunglasses Are Making A Comeback

Over the past decade, we’ve learned that fashion trends are cyclical. Young people suddenly start wearing “grandpa” jerseys unironically. Gen-Z teens reject skinny jeans in favor of baggy or bootleg.

The same is true for eyewear. For a long time, the glasses people wore were getting smaller and less obtrusive by the day. That pivoted, and we returned to an age of big glasses with thick frames.

Sunglasses have been on a different track. They were always a statement piece and signifier of everything “cool.” And while cool was often equated with modern, retro sunglasses are now making a comeback.

If you need a pair of prescription sunglasses, go to GlassesUSA.com and find one of the following retro styles.

Skinny

The ‘90s has become a nostalgic era for many people, both millennials who lived through it and Gen-Zers who arrived shortly after. Skinny sunglasses were a ‘90s staple, that looked kind of ridiculous in retrospect. However, they’re back in style, with celebrities even wearing them on red carpets.

Round

When you picture John Lennon, chances are you see round sunglasses on his face. This style is particularly reminiscent of the ‘60s and ‘70s, and evokes a nostalgia for the activism of the hippie generation. More people are wearing them nowadays, and they will never truly go out of style.

Aviators

Aviator sunglasses have been a staple of pilots for the better part of a century. However, years after Tom Cruise made them cool again in the ‘80s, they gradually became associated with people who had no fashion sense. Basically, they looked good on just about anyone, and just about anyone wore them. Now, Aviators are coming back into popularity. But you can’t get just any pair. Find a pair that is different in some way, whether due to tinted lenses, colorful frames, or a bit of extra curve.

Big Cat-Eyes

Cat-eye sunglasses are often associated with Audrey Hepburn, as she popularised them back in the 1940s and ‘50s. For a few decades, they became associated with older women (or quirky journalists) who wanted to show their flare. But they are coming back into the mainstream, being worn by young celebrities and trendsetters.

Wire-Frame

If you were a fan of the series Heroes back in the 2000s, you will remember the saga of the “man in the wire-frame glasses.” He was an older character, with sinister intentions (and a fair bit of caring as well). At the time, wire-frame glasses would have never been worn by most young people. However, they are extremely fashionable at the moment, both as regular prescription glasses and sunglasses.

Clip-On

In my teens, I would not have been caught dead wearing clip-on sunglasses. These are sunglass lenses that you clip onto your regular glasses frames. They were not so much trendy as tragic back then, in the same way that transition lenses seemed to be simply because they prioritized practicality.

Now, clip-on sunglasses have become trendy. What changed? Who knows, but clip-ons and even transition lenses are now popular and practical at the same time.

Who says you can’t have your cake and eat it?