Pince-Nez Eyewear

[Alan B.]

I've been a longtime fan of pince-nez eyewear. It is ashame that this beautiful eyewear fell out of favor in the 1940s. For twenty years or so I've wanted to wear this style but never saw pince nez in optical stores. Nor did I see anyone wear them in public. I figured there must be a reason I couldn't wear them.

I was wrong. Pince-nez is perfectly suited to modern usage. The problem rests with lazy opticians. It does take a little expertise to get a good fit.

A good friend of mine is an expert in the field and has provided some excellent guidance. I started a blog to pass on my excitement and some knowledge to those who may want to wear pince-nez. The blog is the Pince-Nez Renaissance Please stop by.

 

[imported_Silent_Speaker]

Wow! Thank you so much sir! That is an amazing site that should prove to be most useful to me in the next month.

I've been eyeing P) a pair(?) of these glasses for sometime, and was going to order them but I see that I should spend a little more time in research first.
I've only spent a cursory glance at your site but will be back soon (I've got an exam for which I must study).

Just a quick question, do you find your size to be, though it may fit you, nevertheless uncomfortable after a 'while' of wearing it? Say, an hour or 2?
(silly question, but does the pinching restrict blood flow? )

I'm also looking at some C19th riding temple glasses, perhaps hook-curved legs will stop the blasted things from slipping off my face in this wretched heat!

 

[Nick D]

Great blog, thanks for sharing

My sunglasses and spectacles are both fingerpiece (hard bridge) pince nez. I need to get new lenses in the specs, but I haven't had time to take them in. One thing I've noticed, mine have the old tortise shell pads on the upper part of the grips and plain metal loops on the lower. I've found them to be perfectly comfortable, but that is of course a personal judgement.

When I bought them I got a lot of 5 online. One of them was more or less wrecked, one was way to small. Two were all right (one of those are now my sunglasses), and the other was a perfect fit. Even though the sunglasses are just a little tighter than they probably should be, I have no problem wearing them for long periods, sometimes upwards of five hours or more when driving along I-75.

 

[Alan B.]

Thanks for the kind comments!

Silent Speaker: Personally, I've only worn them for 1/2 hr at most. A friend of mine sent me several pince-nez, all w/ different script lenses. I can't say that I've worn them for an extended period of time as it would give me a headache. However my friend has been wearing them for 40 years or so and loves the comfort. Its like having nothing on and you forget you're wearing them, he says. Soon I'll have my lenses put in and can wear all day.

In a way, I think it will be contact lenses when I was younger. It boils down to your desire to wear them. Then it will be comfortable.

Do plan on spending some time finding your size. It's not just the width of the bridge in a fingerpiece, but the depth of the bridge as well.

Nick You are two steps ahead of me! I'll be looking to you for advice.

 

[Alan B.]

Woops. Speaker, no it does not restrict blood flow. Too bad, because it would be great to stop a nose bleed!

 

[imoldfashioned]

I've got 5 pair on the way--I'm very excited to receive them!

 

[scotrace]

I get a lot of flak for it, but I use an old pair of hoopspring pince-nez in addition to my regular glasses, worn low on my node in front of them, as reading glasses. Sort of cobbled bifocals.

The advantage is that I can easily stick them in a shirt pocket to be pulled out in a darkened restaurant to read the menu, or to quickly read something at a newsstand, etc.

I'm sure it looks ridiculous. But as lance Armstrong said, "you can accomplish a lot if you don't care how you look."

These are my favorites, but they are much, much too small for my face/nose.

 

[Nick D]

Alan B., I liked the ancedote in your blog entry "Myth: They'll Fall Off My Face". I too was suprised at first how well they stayed on. I can't recall a single instance of mine coming off unintentionally.

Most of the pince nez I've owned have had a hole or loop for a cord, but I've never used one. I keep reading that the cord was to catch the specs as they tumble from your nose, but that's obviously not true. The cord served the same function as a monocle cord, to suspend the lense(s) when not in use, not a safety catch.

Perspiration can be a problem, but I've found that if I wipe my nose and make sure the nosepads are dry and then don't move them, even if I'm perspiring quite a bit they stay very secure. If, however, the nosepads are damp, they'll rotate foreward, but not fall off.

 

[imoldfashioned]

These are my favorites, but they are much, much too small for my face/nose.

Gasp! Those are beautiful Scotrace!

 

[BegintheBeguine]

I get a lot of flak for it, but I use an old pair of hoopspring pince-nez in addition to my regular glasses, worn low on my node in front of them, as reading glasses. Sort of cobbled bifocals.

The advantage is that I can easily stick them in a shirt pocket to be pulled out in a darkened restaurant to read the menu, or to quickly read something at a newsstand, etc.

I'm sure it looks ridiculous. But as lance Armstrong said, "you can accomplish a lot if you don't care how you look."

Somewhere there exists pictures of me wearing a found pair of clip-on sunglasses behind my regular eyeglasses while on a conference trip. My pals admired the look but were too afraid to try it themselves, as it's noticeable, but they knew I was used to being looked at, growing up a redhead and all. But I didn't have a code in by node at the time.

 

[scotrace]

node! lol typo!!

 

[Alan B.]

Be bold, be daring. The Duke of Windsor broke many rules and set trends which are followed to this day. Conformity, for the sake of conformity, is BORING.

 

[BegintheBeguine]

node! lol typo!!

lol I thought so, but I also thought it might have been a joke. Pinched nose and all, ya know. Sorry, I'm so mean.

 

[Dinerman]

I've got two pairs. Wear them often.

 

[Warbaby]

Dinerman's Blue Pince-nez

You might be interested in knowing that, in the 19th and early 20th century it was widely believed that blue lenses exerted a calmning effect on hysterics and lunatics in general. They were often prescribed for people with mild mental problems - sort of like 19th century Prozac or Valium.

I have several pairs. They work for me...

 

[MrNewportCustom]

I'm in need of new spectacles - although not for my prescription, thankfully - and after seeing this I just may look into getting some. I had several worries, but you folks have shown them to be quite unfounded.

I would, though, attach a catch cord. Because I think that'd be an interesting look.


Lee

 

[Fletch]

At my last eye exam I asked whether I might not be getting a little presbyopic. (It's getting a little tough to tell i's from l's in the smaller typefaces. Is that Maria or Marla in my inbox?)

The doc flipped thru a few diopters for me and said, "No, nothing worth a $500 pair of specs. But if it gets worse, perhaps you'd consider bifocals."

I would think that pince-nez, worn a little low, would serve admirably, especially over my existing contacts. Something to consider, anyway.

 

[scotrace]

Are there any modern manufacturers?

 

[Jay]

At my last eye exam I asked whether I might not be getting a little presbyopic. (It's getting a little tough to tell i's from l's in the smaller typefaces. Is that Maria or Marla in my inbox?)

Is it weird that I had trouble telling the i from the l in your post? Perhaps I should schedule a trip to the eye doctor again. Thanks, Fletch.

 

[Alan B.]

Are there any modern manufacturers?

Unfortunately not. However, there is an abundant supply of antique pince-nez available at reasonable prices. Antique sellers charge from $50 to $150 and eBay is usually under $20. As w/ eBay, buyer beware but you can get amazing deals.