Welcome to September's edition of Ben Tries. This edition feels less of a blog post and more of a personal endeavour which has seen me scour optician after optician, frame after frame to end up here.
I had my eyes tested and needed new glasses, I looked everywhere for frames only to leave disappointed, no-one stocked frames big enough or thick enough, others were unhelpful, others told me wanting frames as large as I do was ‘wasteful”- and by the way 'Ms Wasteful', RUDE.
I thought I would have luck with Bailey Nelson, however, they have rebranded and now trade as Ollie Quinn and now only seem to stock less exciting glasses, certainly having nothing that suited when I visited their Leeds store.
Then on Facebook (eye-roll, I know) of all places, I saw an eyewear brand advertised and decided to have a look. This is where this post begins, Cubitts. I saw that they had a great selection of frames, stores in London which is great, however, I was at the time back in the North. When I saw that you can order up to 4 Frames for a free home trial- I was ECSTATIC. All you do is pick the frames you wish to try, get them delivered to the door, try them for five days and then simply pop them in the pre-labeled package, take them to a collect+ and you are done. SO BLOODY SIMPLE!!
So dear reader that is exactly what I did, join me as I try my first 4 frames.
So I initially tried 4 frames, to see what I liked…
Judd in Amber | £125
This frame shape was nice and chunky, they have a presence on my face which I like. Although these did not light up my world. At this point, I will state that I like a wide frame that is as wide or wider than my face !!
Matilda in Slate | £125
I loved how bold these frames are, they have the right amount of presence on my face. I wasn’t sure about the colour.
Wollstonecraft in Honey | £125
These frames were opposite to Matilda- they were too small with not enough presence on my face. I loved the colour though !!
Judd in Quartz | £125
These are the same frame as the first pair just in a transparent frame. I wasn’t keen on how much of my face I could see through the frames which is odd but there you go.
So my 5 days ended and I sent them back and didn’t place an order, none of them were quite right. I waited for my confirmation email from Cubitts letting me know they had received them. I then decided to reinvestigate the site.
I really loved the Matilda frames and I wanted to see them in different colours, so I ordered a second try at home set. This time I ordered one frame in 4 colours including the original slate grey colour.
Matilda in Honey | £125
The yellow colour that I loved so much in a more statement frame - this could be love?
Matilda in Light Turtle | £125
A classic colour with depth and light, I loved these frames so much.
Matilda in Dark Turtle | £125
These frames somehow just don’t compare to the other frames, the colour maybe is a little safe and a little flat.
SO I have tried 7 Frames, and have come to some conclusions:
Number 1- I am really fussy when it comes to choosing things !!
Number 2- I NEED the Matilda Frames in my life
Which is exactly what I did, ordering Matilda in Light Turtle and Honey, a little extravagant but I know I deserve them !!
The ordering process is super simple, add the frames to your basket and checkout. Snap a picture of your prescription and pay. You receive a confirmation email, and there is a link to send your Pupillary Distance measurement which is quite fun.
Then you wait for them to arrive, which takes less than it would for a normal optician! I am so happy with them, and it has been well worth the effort. So there you have it many pairs of glasses tried and we have 2 winners, and I am thrilled with my new glasses. I will see you all* on Friday as always.
*That was not a glasses pun, because I am sure you saw that one coming!
Photography by Myself with additional Photography by Rachel Pechey