Prescription computer/reading glasses- lttle choice

[shootingstar]

Honest, I'm surprised and discouraged on limited range of eyeglass frame shapes/colours and styles that I am left to choose. I'm sure long time eyeglass wearers have an opinion. I have a narrow face part around my eyes that I never knew which means over 80% of all eyeglass frames just don't fit me: too wide. Well, I've assumed I had a wide face...I do, except I'm small boned. Another surprise since I thought I had a fat head because I have to wear a large bike helmet size.

Yea, I do have certain specs..and have decided since I am aging and am very slowly getting some grey hairs (which I don't want to colour. Too lazy of me.), I had better find a eyeglass frame that looks slightly funky/interesting ..maybe a maroon red or purply-brown half frames. And a lot of the chic/in style narrower rectangle lens shapes don't suit me. I don't need to look more nerdy. I understand for others it looks chic. I already look nerdy for a woman without glasses. I don't have lovely delicate facial features.

So am fussing over eyeglass designs. I feel out of it: I didn't realize that gold rimmed glasses were definitely aging/old style.

[Crankin]

ShootingStar, go online and search for reading glasses for small heads. I have the same exact issue as you, and I buy my reading glasses online. I also wanted fashionable, funky ones and it was virtually impossible to walk into a store and buy the off the shelf funky ones. There are frames that are made for "tweens" that you could try on at an optical shop, but they will cost a lot more.
I had more of an issue when I wanted to buy fashionable frames for my progressive lenses that I need to wear on the rare occasion I don't have my contacts in. After getting some help here on TE, I found a brand that had a line of frames for small heads and a place about 15 miles away that carried them. I ended up getting a different brand, but found a great optical place. So different than the place I was going to where they told me what I wanted doesn't sell with the stodgy suburban women around here... guess I'm an outlier.

[shootingstar]

Sigh. First I want to try on glasses in person. I need prescription glasses. I have looked at 4 stores of which 3 of them each had several hundred glass styles. I walked out of the stores after much checking, in disbelief.

I have a nose bridge that is slightly less of a problem than some other Asians (well, they tend to get this problem)... I have some choice since I have work related health care benefit for glasses that might cost a wee bit more. But that has not really helped me so far.

Yea, a sister of mine in her 40's wore glasses meant for teens because of her face small size.

[Crankin]

If you are looking for reading glasses, I don't know a soul who gets them made by an optician. You just need your eye doctor to give you your prescription for reading, i.e. do you need 1.50, 2.00, 2.50? Or, go into a drugstore and try on a few and see what works! You could go to a shop and get your head and nose bridge measured, as you will need those measurements to order online. Go back to the store and have someone help you. Try on a few, have them measure you and you'll get an idea of what you want and what fits. It will be clear to the salesperson that your head is too small for what they have. They may try to convince you, but stand firm.

[Irulan]

I have a friend who is child size, and she has a different pair of glasses for every day of the week and the some. I know she gets here's online and I will ask. It's going to be US, does that matter?

[goldfinch]

I get my reading glasses and computer glasses from www.zennioptical.com. You can get prescription lenses and frames from a low price of about $7.00 on up. I have reading glasses in a variety of outrageous frame styles scattered around in the various places we live. I have to have prescription versions because of the astigmatism and differences between the eyes. The simple magnifiers don't work for me. You will need to know your interpupillary distance to order prescription lenses.

I also have a very small face and have no trouble finding cheap decent looking frames on Zenni. You can search by frame size but don't go all the way down to small, overlap a bit into medium. Some very small frames don't show up in a small search. For example, these ones are quite small. I have them:



I search by interpupillary distance.

[shootingstar]

I've never seen frames that low priced.

Well, no I won't be ordering online --prices I got for frame (around $200 or a bit more) + anti-glare, anti-scratch for progressives was closer to $500.00.

[Irulan]

Are you a Costco member? They have a nice frame selection and I've always found something cute for around $75 or less. Plus their frame really take a beating which is something I need.

[Crankin]

Shooting Star, you said you were looking for reading glasses, so I assumed you meant just readers. I was not talking about buying progressive lenses. My progressives cost about 700.00, with all of the stuff I got and I did not get those on line!
I still had to search for brands that fit small heads. But progressives are expensive, there's a lot of technology that goes into that. I don't mess around with my eyes. I used my FSA account to pay for the glasses, above what my insurance paid.

[Catrin]

Computer glasses are different from both readers and progressives - I use computer glasses at work - it does wonders for my neck! Most of the lens is given over to my "mid range" vision (basically), with a small amount of reading at the bottom and a small amount of far distance at the top. This enables me to be able to see who just walked into my office, or to read printed material. I LOVE my computer glasses - but then again I am tied to 2 computers at work, sometimes 3. They cost me around $200, progressives cost me around $700 as well. There is indeed a lot of technology and I don't skimp on being able to see. Last time I decided to get a less expensive version of progressives and spent the next year regretting that choice every.single.day! I won't be doing that again - FSA accounts are great for this.

[malkin]

For computer, I have had good luck with readers that I have 'outgrown.' I love the readers that I have had made at Costco; they're way better than the prefab ones.

[WindingRoad]

http://www.go-optic.com/eyeglasses/1...ood-eyeglasses
http://www.go-optic.com/eyeglasses/1...692-eyeglasses
http://www.go-optic.com/store/eyegla...s.asp?id=52026
http://www.go-optic.com/store/eyegla...s.asp?id=52078
http://www.go-optic.com/store/eyegla...s.asp?id=55815

Here are a few 'small' styles to get you started looking. Do you know your pupillary distance? That's helpful because ideally you want you eye as centered as possible in the lens. With those of us with little faces that's not always easy to do so you get it as close as you can. Try to get nosepads since you are Asian. The plastic styles (unless you get lucky and find a pair that has nosepads) will always slide down and drive you crazy. Have the optician put silicone nosepads on they grip much better than the hard acetate types. Get as light of material as you can afford, it REALLY makes a difference. If you opt to go the frameless or semi-frameless style they will likely tell you that must go with polycarbonate material due to it's increased strength over other materials. If you have any questions I can likely help.

BTW I don't know if you are aware but Oakley now carries 'Asian Fit' frames :-) It's mostly sunglasses but still nice they addressed this issue.

Another thing.... the one gold-ish frame I put up there is not so aging. It's a light satin-brown and it doesn't have the shiney-gold "grandmotherly" look to it. So if you like gold you can still do it, just do a satin finish.

[shootingstar]

I found out that my prescription was for reading and computer. So almost progressives...I guess. I cannot wear readers, 1 eye is slightly weaker than the other.

After much searching around and cycling out to the suburbs for more choice selection, I have a set on order.
I'm crossing my fingers...