I only really do contacts for swimming, or when I was wearing face masks got a long amount of time. Glasses would fog up with the fabric masks that didn’t have the wire nose part.
Oh, and contacts are handy when getting a haircut, so I can see the whole time instead of just when it’s too late.
I’ve been super near-sighted for most of my life. So I was blind, then glad to have glasses, then stuck in glasses, and glad to finally graduate to contacts.
And then people started to get costume lenses…and I couldn’t find them in my prescription.
And then I could. And as chap as my (by now) disposable contacts!
And then I started being able to work my high-prescription glasses down to $10, and tailor pairs for different settings, like indoors, online, or driving.
@brainmist me too on all of that! Except for the fancy color lenses. I should check back and see if I can find some affordable purple contacts now, few years ago they were too $$$ for me
@kerryzero check out southeast Asian companies like Pinky Paradise and Honeycolor. Huge variety, more options for brown eyes and high corrections (I’m -7), and they’re actually safe, wearable prescription lenses, not cheap gas station crap.
And with sales, about $10-$25/ pair for year long lenses.
@Tadlem43 I’ve had good luck with Zenni, the online shop. You just need to ask your eye doctor for a written Rx, so you can plug the numbers in on the website when you create an account. They have a decent selection of styles, colors, sizes, etc. You can upload a photo of yourself if you want to use their virtual try-on feature, which could be helpful if you’ve never worn glasses.
A couple of tips that might help:
The trickiest part is getting your pupillary distance, which is what the techs measure when they hold up the box-shaped instrument & have you look at the dot of light in the viewfinder. The eye doctors have to give you your Rx when requested, by law, but (possibly depending on where you live?) usually keep the PD to themselves. There are lots of ways to get this, though (apps, having a friend use a ruler, etc) & unless you wear bifocals/progressives or have other special corrections, like prisms, “close enough” is fine.
Since you don’t have preferences already, the best thing to do would be to try on some frames at any place that sells glasses, like your eye doctor, Walmart, Costco, etc, find some that look good AND are comfortable/fit well, then write down the description (frame style, shape, color, etc) & the numbers that are usually on the inside of the temple arms, so you’ll end up with a range of measurements that you know will work. There should be a bridge width (on the bridge itself), temple length, lens height & width, & frame width. Just write them in the order they appear on the glasses, the website will explain them. This makes it easier to narrow down the selection when searching, then you can use that virtual try-on feature to confirm they look good.
The last step is making any adjustments, once you get them, to perfect the fit. There’s some information on the site with suggestions, & you can find stuff online, too. Depending on your eye doctor, you could probably get them to help you with this, if you have any trouble. Zenni has a guarantee, too, just in case. Good luck!
@Tadlem43 I like Warby Parker, because they are covered by my vision plan, but there are less expensive options. They will send you frames to try on at home, and they’ve also got retail stores where you can try them.
Most glasses places in the US are owned by Luxottica (Pearle, LensCrafters, Target, Sears (if they still exist), etc.), as well as Eyemed and glasses.com, and they only carry frames they also own, like Oakley, Ray-Ban, Versace, and, well, any designer name. In my experience they regularly tweak the frame sizes, so you can’t move lenses to new ones if they break. You’re pretty much stuck with what they’ve got in the store, too. They don’t care because, until the last few years, they were practically a monopoly. Now there are online options
So I would go with someone else, like Zenni or Warby Parker. And, as noted in the previous reply, ask for your PD when you get your eye exam. They may or may not do it, but you can ask. A Warby Parker store may do it, too, even if you don’t buy anything.
I wear progressive lenses, which aren’t cheap anywhere, but they are half what LensCrafters charges.
@Tadlem43 Here’s an example of why I hate Luxottica: when I had their vision plan through work, Eyemed, I bought glasses from someone not owned by them. To get my (lesser) coverage I had to print out a form and mail it to them with the receipt, then wait six weeks for a check. They only reason I can think of for not doing this instantly online is that they wanted to punish me for buying glasses from someone else.
@ircon96 Wow! Thank you so much! This helps me a lot!
I have the RX, but not the PD. I’ll check into that. And I had no idea about all of the measurements. I’ve been going to places and trying them on, but just for comfort, not with all of that in mind.
This is great!
Thanks again!
@craigthom Thanks! I don’t really need to worry about changing frames. I’m going to have to have cataract surgery next year and I just need these to tide me over until then.
Great information, though. I’ve thought about checking out WP, but just haven’t taken the time yet.
I’ll do that though!
Thanks, again!
@Tadlem43 You also have to realize that cheaper lenses (with progressive lenses) likely have a narrower area of clear vision. I learned that the hard way.
Also I am tall so I had them lower a mm the height of the “middle” (I have no idea what you call that). Since I am tall I didn’t have to look down as much to get clear vision at a common distance.
@Tadlem43 No problem, i can only imagine how hard it is to suddenly be in your predicament. I was a recovering LensCrafters survivor when i came across Zenni years ago. It was a whole new experience, so i had to do a lot of research before feeling comfortable ordering my first pair. I figured i could put it to use in an attempt to give you a head start.
Good luck with the cataract surgery; my father had that done after years of mudding through & he was amazed at the difference. I’d never seen him so thrilled with anything, he was almost giddy!
@ircon96 Yeah… it s a whole new world for me, so I really do appreciate the information!
I was supposed to have the surgery yesterday, well, the first one, but logistics wouldn’t allow it, and the doctor’s schedule wouldn’t allow for me to have it until March, so I have to put it off until next year. My insurance will only pay for one exam and a second opinion per year, so next year, it is. I’m really disappointed. I was looking forward to getting it done.
My aunt, my neighbor, most everyone I know who has had it, talks about how vivid the colors are after the surgery.
I want to be able to drive at night. I miss that. But one doc say it may be more my nearsightedness and astigmatism that causes the problem than the cataracts, so the glasses my help.
Again…thank you so much for the info!
@ircon96@Kidsandliz wow! Yeah… I’m having work done on my house and the told me to not pick out paint colors until after the surgery. lol That’s kinda scary!
@Kidsandliz@Tadlem43 You’ll probably notice a lot more details in general, too, not just colors. My father was colorblind, but there was a picture my mother hung near the stairs he used every day, & after the surgery, he realized it was a jigsaw puzzle that she’d framed! I think that’s when he was officially impressed.
Both but mostly contacts because I like to see all the peripheral vision stuff. But it’s fun to wear different glasses at times. And to look sexy and intelligent .
Glasses. The thought of touching my eyeballs with contacts make me cringe. But then I needed cataract surgery. I chose to get LASIK at the same time. Now I can get by without glasses. YMMV
Glasses. I’ve worn them since I was eight. When I was in my late teens and early twenties contacts were expensive and required maintenance. Now, after many decades, they are just part of my life.
Glasses. I tried contacts, but I could never get my eyelids up far enough to get them in, which is why you don’t want hooded eyelids. Couple that with the fact that the LASIK consultant said he wouldn’t perform it on me, and now you know why last year’s New Year’s resolution was to go full Elton John and have glasses for most of my outfits. I get mine from wherelight.com; they’re online-only, but they often have sales in which you can buy three pair for $129 US.
Either or. I wear glasses everyday and love to change them up. I have been having trouble finding contacts that fit well anymore. I’m willing to try again, but am not optimistic.
20/20
The only glasses I wear are sunglasses. Sun contacts are something I don’t want to contemplate.
Given those two choices, glasses eight days of the week…but if I had lots of money, LASIK.
LASIK.
Then I got older…
… Reading glasses all over the house…
@shahnm Ditto! Get readerest magnet hooks so you always know where your glasses are.
Half off on amazon: www.amazon.com/Readerest-Magnetic-Eyeglass-Holder-Stainless/dp/B08FF942NW
@shahnm And without Lasik the more near sighted you are the longer you can go without having to use reading glasses.
Glasses;
You can’t give annoying people the same glare with contacts!
@lonocat Can’t you?
Glasses.
I only really do contacts for swimming, or when I was wearing face masks got a long amount of time. Glasses would fog up with the fabric masks that didn’t have the wire nose part.
Oh, and contacts are handy when getting a haircut, so I can see the whole time instead of just when it’s too late.
@LaserEyes
Contacts are also useful for buying new glasses! Since the frames you try in just have plain glass in them.
@Kyeh Ooh, yes, that’s another great use for them!
@Kyeh @LaserEyes But they don’t account for the refraction that makes your eyes appear bigger or smaller.
@brainmist @LaserEyes Yes, unfortunately. That’s always a disappointment.
I’ve been super near-sighted for most of my life. So I was blind, then glad to have glasses, then stuck in glasses, and glad to finally graduate to contacts.
And then people started to get costume lenses…and I couldn’t find them in my prescription.
And then I could. And as chap as my (by now) disposable contacts!
And then I started being able to work my high-prescription glasses down to $10, and tailor pairs for different settings, like indoors, online, or driving.
Anyway, turns out what I prefer are options.
@brainmist me too on all of that! Except for the fancy color lenses. I should check back and see if I can find some affordable purple contacts now, few years ago they were too $$$ for me
@kerryzero check out southeast Asian companies like Pinky Paradise and Honeycolor. Huge variety, more options for brown eyes and high corrections (I’m -7), and they’re actually safe, wearable prescription lenses, not cheap gas station crap.
And with sales, about $10-$25/ pair for year long lenses.
Putting contacts into my eyes. Ain’t happening. Glasses all the way.
@chuckf1 Doesn’t it hurt more to put glasses in your eyes??
@shahnm You get used to it.
glasses. i only wear when driving
Glasses. Contacts don’t hold enough beer.
@phendrick After a few glasses I like some contact.
@phendrick so very true!
For the first time in my life I now have to wear glasses.
Where can you get them cheap, but decent quality?? Any suggestions?
@Tadlem43 I’ve had good luck with Zenni, the online shop. You just need to ask your eye doctor for a written Rx, so you can plug the numbers in on the website when you create an account. They have a decent selection of styles, colors, sizes, etc. You can upload a photo of yourself if you want to use their virtual try-on feature, which could be helpful if you’ve never worn glasses.
A couple of tips that might help:
The trickiest part is getting your pupillary distance, which is what the techs measure when they hold up the box-shaped instrument & have you look at the dot of light in the viewfinder. The eye doctors have to give you your Rx when requested, by law, but (possibly depending on where you live?) usually keep the PD to themselves. There are lots of ways to get this, though (apps, having a friend use a ruler, etc) & unless you wear bifocals/progressives or have other special corrections, like prisms, “close enough” is fine.
Since you don’t have preferences already, the best thing to do would be to try on some frames at any place that sells glasses, like your eye doctor, Walmart, Costco, etc, find some that look good AND are comfortable/fit well, then write down the description (frame style, shape, color, etc) & the numbers that are usually on the inside of the temple arms, so you’ll end up with a range of measurements that you know will work. There should be a bridge width (on the bridge itself), temple length, lens height & width, & frame width. Just write them in the order they appear on the glasses, the website will explain them. This makes it easier to narrow down the selection when searching, then you can use that virtual try-on feature to confirm they look good.
The last step is making any adjustments, once you get them, to perfect the fit. There’s some information on the site with suggestions, & you can find stuff online, too. Depending on your eye doctor, you could probably get them to help you with this, if you have any trouble. Zenni has a guarantee, too, just in case. Good luck!
@Tadlem43 I like Warby Parker, because they are covered by my vision plan, but there are less expensive options. They will send you frames to try on at home, and they’ve also got retail stores where you can try them.
Most glasses places in the US are owned by Luxottica (Pearle, LensCrafters, Target, Sears (if they still exist), etc.), as well as Eyemed and glasses.com, and they only carry frames they also own, like Oakley, Ray-Ban, Versace, and, well, any designer name. In my experience they regularly tweak the frame sizes, so you can’t move lenses to new ones if they break. You’re pretty much stuck with what they’ve got in the store, too. They don’t care because, until the last few years, they were practically a monopoly. Now there are online options
So I would go with someone else, like Zenni or Warby Parker. And, as noted in the previous reply, ask for your PD when you get your eye exam. They may or may not do it, but you can ask. A Warby Parker store may do it, too, even if you don’t buy anything.
I wear progressive lenses, which aren’t cheap anywhere, but they are half what LensCrafters charges.
@Tadlem43 Here’s an example of why I hate Luxottica: when I had their vision plan through work, Eyemed, I bought glasses from someone not owned by them. To get my (lesser) coverage I had to print out a form and mail it to them with the receipt, then wait six weeks for a check. They only reason I can think of for not doing this instantly online is that they wanted to punish me for buying glasses from someone else.
@ircon96 Wow! Thank you so much! This helps me a lot!
I have the RX, but not the PD. I’ll check into that. And I had no idea about all of the measurements. I’ve been going to places and trying them on, but just for comfort, not with all of that in mind.
This is great!
Thanks again!
@craigthom Thanks! I don’t really need to worry about changing frames. I’m going to have to have cataract surgery next year and I just need these to tide me over until then.
Great information, though. I’ve thought about checking out WP, but just haven’t taken the time yet.
I’ll do that though!
Thanks, again!
@craigthom That’s absurd. I thought everything was online these days.
Good to know!
@Tadlem43 You also have to realize that cheaper lenses (with progressive lenses) likely have a narrower area of clear vision. I learned that the hard way.
Also I am tall so I had them lower a mm the height of the “middle” (I have no idea what you call that). Since I am tall I didn’t have to look down as much to get clear vision at a common distance.
@Kidsandliz Good point! Thanks!
@Tadlem43 No problem, i can only imagine how hard it is to suddenly be in your predicament. I was a recovering LensCrafters survivor when i came across Zenni years ago. It was a whole new experience, so i had to do a lot of research before feeling comfortable ordering my first pair. I figured i could put it to use in an attempt to give you a head start.
Good luck with the cataract surgery; my father had that done after years of mudding through & he was amazed at the difference. I’d never seen him so thrilled with anything, he was almost giddy!
@ircon96 @Tadlem43 My mom had cataract surgery. She was shocked to discover one of her favorite blouses had yellow in the blue and while pattern.
@ircon96 Yeah… it s a whole new world for me, so I really do appreciate the information!
I was supposed to have the surgery yesterday, well, the first one, but logistics wouldn’t allow it, and the doctor’s schedule wouldn’t allow for me to have it until March, so I have to put it off until next year. My insurance will only pay for one exam and a second opinion per year, so next year, it is. I’m really disappointed. I was looking forward to getting it done.
My aunt, my neighbor, most everyone I know who has had it, talks about how vivid the colors are after the surgery.
I want to be able to drive at night. I miss that. But one doc say it may be more my nearsightedness and astigmatism that causes the problem than the cataracts, so the glasses my help.
Again…thank you so much for the info!
@ircon96 @Kidsandliz wow! Yeah… I’m having work done on my house and the told me to not pick out paint colors until after the surgery. lol That’s kinda scary!
@Kidsandliz @Tadlem43 You’ll probably notice a lot more details in general, too, not just colors. My father was colorblind, but there was a picture my mother hung near the stairs he used every day, & after the surgery, he realized it was a jigsaw puzzle that she’d framed! I think that’s when he was officially impressed.
Both but mostly contacts because I like to see all the peripheral vision stuff. But it’s fun to wear different glasses at times. And to look sexy and intelligent
.
@kerryzero
so you don’t subscribe to the “Men don’t make passes at women in glasses” theory?
(and yes… glasses can look hot on some folks!)
Glasses. The thought of touching my eyeballs with contacts make me cringe. But then I needed cataract surgery. I chose to get LASIK at the same time. Now I can get by without glasses. YMMV
Glasses. I’ve worn them since I was eight. When I was in my late teens and early twenties contacts were expensive and required maintenance. Now, after many decades, they are just part of my life.
LASIK!
I’d prefer the eyes that I had for most of my life (until about 10 years ago) that had significantly-better-than-average vision with no correction.
Glasses. I can take them off when I want you to look blurry.
@OnionSoup
Alcohol will do the same thing…
I can ONLY wear classes. Contacts would not be Practical for my prescription.
Had LASIK done on one eye about 30 years ago. Don’t need glasses for distance or close up/reading and I am 68…
Win/Win!
Glasses. I tried contacts, but I could never get my eyelids up far enough to get them in, which is why you don’t want hooded eyelids. Couple that with the fact that the LASIK consultant said he wouldn’t perform it on me, and now you know why last year’s New Year’s resolution was to go full Elton John and have glasses for most of my outfits. I get mine from wherelight.com; they’re online-only, but they often have sales in which you can buy three pair for $129 US.
Prefer contacts but can’t justify them all the time. I want to get implantable collamer lenses so that I don’t have to be blind when I wake up
Either or. I wear glasses everyday and love to change them up. I have been having trouble finding contacts that fit well anymore. I’m willing to try again, but am not optimistic.