Who sells eyeglasses having metal frames but no nose pads? I want the bridge to rest on the top of my nose.
So far most glasses shops have never heard of such a thing, though one does know of such a model that they just discontinued.
Various costume companies sell them online for Civil War re-enactors and similar theatrical hobbyists, so that’s an option, but I’m unsure about wading through all the bizarre styles or ensuring a fit.
My problem is the bridge of my nose is really high, so nose pads sit below the bridge and pinch my nose shut, and the glasses slide down until the flare of my nostrils stops them. I just don’t think eyewear fashion should have to interfere with breathing.
I guess plastic frames could be OK, too, if they sit on top of the nose rather than pinching it, though I’ve never seen any like that.
You need to find a decent optician. If your glasses slide down your nose it’s because they haven’t been fitted to your head properly. A good optician can adjust the nosepads so they sit on your nose at the right place and keep the frame at the right height. They can also help you find a frame that can be adjusted for your needs. There are several types of bridges and nosepad arms, and the optician should be able to tell which ones will work well on your face.
I’ve seen small metal frames with a bridge that rests on the top of the nose, but I don’t know who makes that style now, because it’s been over ten years since I was an optician. There used to be a John Lennon collection that had one or two like that. Last I knew it was bought by Luxottica.
Finding the right bridge measurement might be the key for you. If your glasses are sliding down your nose, the bridge is too big. Your temples may also be too long. I have to bend my earpieces more sharply downward and pinch my nosepads closer together for the right fit. My bridge is low. I buy frames with nosepads specifically because they’re more adjustable, I would have thought those would be the least problematic for you.
With respect, rubbish. The bridge of my nose is incompatible with any frame I’ve tried, and no amount of moving the nosepads around is going to fix that.
Maybe there are opticians here that will source bespoke frames, but I’ve never met one here in melb.vic.au
I would have thought that it would take very little effort to remove the nose pads. Maybe need to use a nail file to smooth of any rough edges remaining.
Doug K., I think “good optician” may be changing since you were in the business. I’ve been fighting this problem for a while and it seems to be steadily getting worse. In my nose the joint between bone and cartilage is very high, above my pupils, and my cartilage is not only pretty soft and thin, the sides are parallel so there is nothing to support weight until the glasses slide down to the flare of the nostrils. Changing the width doesn’t matter. I try to fix this by bending the nose pads so that they stick horizontally rearward and are much higher in the frames, which is the best I can do – and replacing the pads with round ones because the usual pads are now horizontal. I can get it right, but they are then sticking out so far that they are not very strong, and keep spreading. So, all of this takes a great deal of effort, and the people that sell glasses don’t want to spend the time. The trend in stores, as I observe it, is less and less training for the people who supposedly fit glasses, and more and more emphasis on fashion and glamorous names on the frames. Which, ironically, is driving more and more business to online sellers, because the stores are offering pretty nearly the same experience as online sellers but with smaller selections and higher prices.
There is an interesting movement afoot at opticiansforchange.com but it seems directed at opticians themselves and not end users.
Melbourne, yes, I think this is my situation too. I have about 15 pairs of glasses from over the years and none of them have ever fit in an even close or acceptable way. Two of them I modified by removing the nose pads and building my own bridge out of wire and epoxy, so it sits like a saddle on the narrowest part of my nose about 4 mm above my pupils. These are wonderful: they stay where they belong, they don’t hurt, and best of all they don’t interfere with breathing. Of course they look way too goofy to wear to work, but maybe if I could find a jeweler to modify frames… I don’t know…
Donnerwetter, thanks for pointing those out! I will probably try ordering them, though I’m discouraged that they’re in the “retired” collection. Like I said, I did find somebody that once carried what I wanted.
Bob++, it isn’t hard to remove the nose pads, but the cross piece has to be further down and rearward to be the support. Otherwise, the glasses sit on my cheeks, which means they move around a great deal.
I notice that’s Montez from Workaholics modeling them.
I would think that if you took glasses that were meant to have nose pads and did that to them, that you would also then have to bend them in a bit to make up for how much wider they’d be or they’d sit too low. Of course, then they’d look funny. Doing that much work almost seems like a job for a jeweler that’s skilled in sizing rings, someone that could remove part of the bridge and bring the two eye pieces close together…but then I tend to overthink things.
I’m also surprised they make these, I would have thought they’d be really uncomfortable. As anyone that wears glasses can tell you, regular gasses get uncomfortable as the day wears on, pretty much anywhere that they contact your head/face. I’d think contacting your nose, all the way around, with such a thin piece of metal would start to get annoying within an hour or two, especially on the bridge where it’s just bone. Either way, it’s going to leave a big red mark. I’m guessing people that are wearing glasses like these are wearing them for show, not for comfort. Googling pictures of Eric Griffin, I can’t find him wearing these glasses (maybe he wears them at home at not on the road and that’s why).
ETA Napier, I didn’t see what you posted while I was typing this. Since I said it in the post, I’ll reiterate it here (since you mentioned it), look into taking some frames to a jeweler. Even if you just take them there to have them modified and take them to the eyeglasses store to have refitted.
Optometrist Attic. He specializes in NOS (new old stock) and still in production but very old-fashioned frames (it’s where I get mine, and have for years).
I see a couple of frames there that might be what you’re looking for.
There’s nothing new about chain stores using untrained or undertrained help. However, (and this drifts into my opinion), those people are not opticians. There is a handful of states that requires opticians to be licensed, and if you’re fortunate enough to live in one you can be pretty sure you’re going to get competent help. Elsewhere, your best bet is to ask if the optician is ABO certified. The standards for maintaining certification are actually a little stricter than they were when I left the field. The ABO has some information for consumers that might be helpful. Why Use a Certified
Oakley has a line of prescription compatible frames some of which have integrated non-nosepad bridges. You need to get the lenses through local opticians that carry the line. They are quite pricey.