When my good friend Holly walked in, I could tell right away that something was different. A new pair of glasses - a beautiful wrought-metal frame. After admiring them, I asked (perhaps rudely) how much they had cost. After all, my own most recent pair would have been unaffordable if not for health insurance.
Holly's answer surprised me. She said that the frames were from the 1950s, and she had purchased them through an online antique site for just $40. The prescription lenses that were in the frame when it arrived didn't match Holly's needs, so she ordered lenses to be cut to fit the frame, in her prescription.
For people like me who require thicker lenses for special conditions, just up and ordering any pair of glasses isn't possible. But frames can cost over $200, and if I was able to find the right frame, why couldn't I get an inexpensive one and only pay for the lenses?
Let's see if I can look as good as Professor Tiger up there. Next time I need a new pair of glasses, I'll be looking online first.
Image courtesy of gabetarian | sxc.hu
I'm sure someone has mentioned this by now, but http://www.zennioptical.com/ is pretty fantastic. I've ordered a few pairs through there with great luck, and my insurance still covered the much reduced cost.
ReplyDeleteIf you require particularly unusual lenses, I can't say with certainty that they'll be able to accommodate, but it is worth a look.