Heritage inspirations and advanced approaches

Frames: Abstract patterns

Austrian eyewear brand, Andy Wolf Eyewear, has launched a new metal eyewear concept for the autumn-winter season.

The ‘P22’ collection includes five optical styles and two sunglasses.

Several of the metal rims feature an abstract pattern made up of a semicircle and rectangle, inspired by the letters ‘A’ and ‘W’.

Instead of conventional metal sides, the frames host acetate sleeves with a shingle-shaped facet at the tips.

The collection includes the ‘4786,’ a feminine, oversized vintage-style frame. The sides of the frame are set at the bottom and swing upwards. The masculine-style ‘4787,’ is a slim rectangular frame with angled corner details.

The panto ‘4788’ and ‘4789,’ and the round ‘4790’ complete the optical range.

The sunglasses include the almond-shaped ‘Yarrow,’ and the unisex aviator ‘Chervil.’

Colour accents have been specifically chosen for the season, with trending colours ‘digital lavender’ and ‘jade green’ included as highlights against classic colours such as black, rose gold and taupe.

The two sunglasses are named to reflect the brand’s ‘Grow with us’ project, through which since 2022 every purchase of an Andy Wolf frame contributes to the recultivation of a square metre of a wildflower meadow in Austria.

Frames: High tech inspiration

J.F. Rey released its autumn/winter collection with futuristic styles and a campaign to match.

Included in the men’s line of frames are the stainless-steel designs: ‘JF3021,’ ‘JF3022,’ and ‘JF3023.’

Designed to offer a minimalist style with “high-tech” influences, the frames feature articulated sides with a screwless flex hinge. The hinge concept was inspired by robotics engineering principles and allows the eye care professional to easily replace the sides of the frame.

The frames are available in a range of muted hues with subtle galvanic shades, and styles with brushed colour pops that highlight the structure of the designs.

Releasing the collection, the brand released a campaign celebrating an “odyssey in which humans and technologies merge in a vibrant and stylish universe.”

Frames: Inspired by Japan

Minamoto, the Japanese brand from Charmant, has released its second collection, inspired by the heritage and craftsmanship of eyewear in Japan.

The new styles draw on the Japanese art of lacquerware or ‘urushi,’ a resin applied to coat tableware and art. The red and black ‘urushi’ inspired colour accents appear on several of the new frames.

Like the frames in the first Minamoto collection, which were named after filmmaker Akira Kurosawa’s film ‘Seven Samurai,’ the new models are named after characters from more of Kurosawa’s films: ‘Sanjuro,’ ‘Hidden Fortress,’ ‘Ran,’ and ‘Red Beard.’

Frames include the unisex ‘Kaede’ which features geometric lines and is available in an urushi red finish. The frame also comes in demi tones or antique colouring, and is available in rosé gold, white, gold plating and antique grey. The frame is named after Lady Kaede, a leading character in the film, ‘Ran.’

Frames: Timeless tartan

The Edinburgh-based brand, Hemp Eyewear, has launched a collection of tartan frames, made from Scottish kilt off-cuts.

The collection has taken two years to develop, the company said, and includes two tartans: the MacDonald Clan Modern, chosen for its classic red colour and iconic name, and the Irish National, originally designed as a celebration of Ireland.

The three styles, ‘Nessie,’ ‘Kelpie,’ and ‘Wulver,’ have been named after mythical creatures in Scottish folklore.

The process involves combining organic hemp fibres with small pieces of tartan fabric, which are embedded in a customised mould. Frame templates are sketched into the material and the shapes are then cut and handcrafted with rotary tools. The frames are polished with a combination of stone powder and grape oil, a by-product of the wine industry from France.

In the future, the company intends to offer customers the opportunity to recycle their own tartan fabric or clothes into bespoke eyewear.

Frames: Memphis-inspired

Face A Face has launched a new collection inspired by the Memphis artistic movement of the 1980s.

The frame designs aim to create “dynamism and volume,” the brand said, with geometric shapes and vibrant colours.

The collection includes the frame ‘Moves,’ which features an endpiece that is shifted outwards with a staircase pattern, zig-zagging lines and mismatching three-tone acetate. The design is available as a small hexagon shape or a large panto.

The ‘Eiffel’ frame, available as a large panto or small square, recreates the appearance of the metal bars that make up the eponymous Eiffel Tower. The model contrasts fine lines of 4mm titanium against a dark background.

The ‘Wisper’ frame combines a slim-line front with pictorial sides and endtips. The two-toned acetate model is available as a large hexagon or small panto.

Finally, the collection is completed with ‘Cloud,’ a three-tone acetate design with an integrated flex hinge. The rim of the lens is projected forward, to reveal a pop of the bright frame on the edges. The design has been constructed to resemble metal frames, the company said, and is available as a pilot rectangle shape or large rectangle.

Software: Slit lamp skills

Haag-Streit Simulation has rolled out a new software update for its Eyesi Slit Lamp simulator. The update extends the courseware available through the simulator.

New courses include training on standard anterior segment examinations, designed to support beginners in examining patients’ eyelids, conjunctiva and cornea. Red and green marks help trainees to keep the examination area focused. Trainees are also now able to retract the eyelids to examine the upper and lower bulbar conjunctiva.

A new online course has been added to the VRmNet platform to provide an introduction to slit lamp components and basic handling. The training outlines positioning the slit lamp and how to set the focus, and also illustrates how to adjust the illumination settings and set the microscope arm to get optimal images.

A new case study has been introduced for trainees who will be guided through the examination of a virtual patient presenting with pigment dispersion syndrome. Trainees will be guided by visual marks and medical background information on the different findings.

Finally, a new gonioscopy course introduces tasks to train the visualisation of the chamber angle using the corneal wedge technique. A gonioscopy task is followed by examinations of the superior/inferior and nasal/temporal chamber angle, including rotating the slit light and tilting the illumination column. An additional 360 degree examination aims to improve gonioscopy skills of more advanced trainees.

Lenses: Photochromic in the spotlight

IOT showcased its latest photochromic lenses, Neochromes, at Silmo this autumn, with a new campaign to help raise the profile of the brand amongst optical businesses and laboratories. The light-activated lenses, which launched in summer, have been designed to adapt quickly to changing light conditions and perform in a range of temperatures, with the lenses able to face from dark to clear in less than three minutes.

The new lenses were created through the development of high-performance photochromic dyes, the company said.

While at the show, the company introduced a new measurement app created to help practitioners to measure necessary parameters and compare different lens designs and coatings.