High prescription lenses are often thick and heavy, which makes it difficult for high prescription eyeglass wearers to find a frame that hides the bulk and looks proportional to their face. The last thing you want is for your glasses to feel heavy, unbalanced, and bulky. Choosing the right frame materials, shape, and size will keep your lenses in the perfect spot for everyday wear while also disguising some of the bulk of high prescription lenses. Below are some tips for choosing the right frames for your unique prescription.

Keeping Glasses Light

Choosing a frame that helps reduce the size and weight of your high prescription lenses is the first place to start. Reducing the frame thickness as much as possible will provide you with a more comfortable wear while also creating a sleek look. Wearing something heavy on your face for hours each day can cause bruising and major discomfort, so choosing the right frames can help save your nose and face from these discomforts.

There are brands that carry high-index frames, made specifically for these types of lenses. Choosing one of these frame options is the best way to ensure the lenses remain in the right place and have limited bulk. 

Frames That Hide Lens Thickness

The size and shape of your frames can also disguise some of the frame thickness and help improve the look of the large lenses on your face. While some frames may look appealing on a website or without your lenses, square or rectangular frames may look odd with high prescription lenses. 

Round And Oval Shapped Lenses

The best frame options for high prescription lenses are round or oval frames because they match the curvature of the high prescription lenses. By reducing edge distortion, the thicker lenses won’t look like a glass soda bottle or comical goggles on the wearer’s face.

Round frames are also the easiest to distribute the lens thickness, making it easier for an optometrist to keep the lenses thin and sleek when placing them inside your frames. If you need a high prescription, find a rounder or curved-edge frame that also complements your face shape.

Using High Index Lenses

Even if a good frame choice, certain high prescription lenses are hard to trim down. High index lenses are a thinner option that still provides clarity of the world around you, no matter if it is close up or far away. 1.67 and 1.74 high-index lenses are great for strong prescriptions and are some of the thinnest options on the market. High-index lenses bend the natural light more efficiently, so they need less material to help patients see clearly, limiting bulk and creating a more comfortable wearing experience.

Stay Away From Frameless

Heavy or thick lenses will not look sleek in frameless options and may even be more likely to fall out of your frames. Choose a full-rim option to hide the edges of your lenses and keep the glass from extensive damage. Rimmed glasses are less “modern” than some of the frameless ones from popular brands, but high prescription lenses need this added support in order to remain usable.

Sturdy Frame Materials

Frame materials can also help secure your lenses and carry some of the weight. Durable frames will keep the weight off the bridge of your nose and your cheeks, lowering the risk of bruising or strained muscles. Heavy lenses may also lead to headaches after wearing your glasses for multiple hours.

Many metals like titanium, stainless steel, or aluminum are the most common options for eyeglass frames, because they are durable while still relatively lightweight. Avoid plastic, nylon, or polycarbonate for high prescription lenses. Working with your optometrist or eyeglass expert can help you find a material that feels light on your face without bending or breaking because of thicker lenses. 

Many brands or optometrists who create high prescription lenses will have frames that complement them. Some popular brands that are known for quality and designs that hide thick lenses include:

• Oliver Peoples
• Barton Perreira
• Lii Works
• Warby Parker
• EYEVAN
• Oakley

Eyeglasses From Wolcott Optical

Wolcott Optical has been providing modern and durable eyewear for over 85 years. We offer prescription lenses, bifocals, reading glasses, prescription safety glasses, sunglasses, and more. Our selection has a variety of styles and shapes, so you can find something that meets your needs and personality. We want all of our gear to help you feel confident, see clearly, and protect your eyes from unnecessary injury. Wolcott is dedicated to customer satisfaction and will work with you to find the best frames, lenses, or accessories possible. Visit us in Millcreek, UT, to get started on the road to better vision.

Wonderful as glasses are for clarifying your vision, there are some very common issues with glasses that can make them pesky to deal with. If you’re someone who alternates between contact lenses and glasses or you’re someone who only wears glasses in specific circumstances, you may dread putting your glasses on precisely because of these common issues with glasses. Fortunately, there are things that you can do to fix these problems.

Here’s what you need to know about some of the most common issues with glasses and what to do about them. 

#1. Fogging Up

Your glasses can fog up when you wear a mask, cook, work out, and more. This can be incredibly annoying, as you need to clean your glasses in order to be able to see again. Fortunately, there are some things you can do.

In order to prevent your glasses from fogging up, you need to ensure that there’s good air circulation and that they sit far enough away from your face. Sweating can cause your glasses to fog, which a headband and dressing according to the weather can help with. You can also ask your eye doctor about anti-fog lenses. 

#2. Hurting Your Ears

One of the most common issues with glasses is when they hurt your ears. This can literally make wearing your glasses a pain, and cause you to suffer from headaches. 

If you find yourself constantly taking your glasses off because they hurt your ears, this could be because your glasses aren’t properly fitted to your face. You’ll want to have your glasses adjusted so that they fit you properly, without any pain.

The material your glasses are made out of can also hurt you, if you are sensitive to it. 

#3. Sliding Down Your Nose

By far, struggling with your glasses sliding down your nose is one of the most common issues with glasses. If you’re constantly having to push your glasses back up, there are a few reasons why this could be. Sometimes, they slide simply because you are sweaty, but other times, there are steps you can take to resolve the issue.

Some of the reasons why glasses slide down your nose include: the frames are too wide/heavy; your glasses are poorly fitted; there are loose screws; you have oily skin; and/or there’s not enough temple support. Your optician will be able to help you fix your glasses or find a frame more suited to your face.  

#4. Hurting Your Nose

If your glasses hurt your nose, you’re not alone. This is one of the common issues with glasses that happens when your glasses aren’t properly fitted or the lenses are too heavy for the frames. When your glasses hurt your nose, it usually means that the nose pad is too tight. It could also mean that the frames and lenses are too heavy. This can lead to those red mak after you take your glasses off.

Try on your frames before you buy them and have your optician adjust them if they don’t feel comfortable. A light frame can also help to alleviate pain on your nose. 

#5. Headaches

Up until now, most of the common issues with glasses that we’ve talked about have been because of fitting issues. If your glasses aren’t fitted properly, this can definitely cause headaches. However, there are a few other reasons why you may be struggling with headaches when you wear your glasses.

If you just got a new prescription or are new to glasses, it’s normal to have a headache for a few days as you get used to them. This should go away as your eyes adjust. You could also be suffering from headaches because you have an incorrect prescription or heavy frames. If your headaches don’t go away within a few days, talk to your eye doctor. 

#6. Feeling Dizzy

Like headaches, if your glasses make you feel dizzy, this could simply be a result of adjusting to your new glasses. Like headaches, it should go away within a few days. This is because your brain may need some time to adjust to the change in images it receives from your eyes.

However, if your dizziness continues, you’ll want to talk to your eye doctor. 

Are You Having Issues With Your Glasses?

Wolcott Optical is here to help! Our opticians can help you find frames suited to your face and adjust them so that they’re comfortable to wear. If you’re struggling with any of the above common issues with glasses or any others, please don’t hesitate to contact us today!