The lowdown on NZFW eyewear trends

With NZ Fashion Week off to a rip-roaring start, it's all too clear that no outfit, however stylish, is complete without a pair of statement sunnies. We pick the brains of Sunglass Hut Buyer Director extraordinaire Francesca Pezzutto about trends we can expect to see both on and around the runway this Fashion Week, and what should be on our radar for the upcoming summer season. 

Francesca Pezzutto 

Remix: What is the biggest eyewear trend for Fashion Week in New Zealand?

Francesca: A key trend for Fashion Week in New Zealand is the Tiny 90s trend. Once the ultimate cool statement in the '90s and early 2000s, micro frames are officially back. Ranging from round shapes to the fast-forward shapes reminiscent of Matrix, this seasons eyewear provides the perfect statement accessory for a compelling retro but edgy look.

We are seeing this trend on brands including Sunglass Hut x Off-White collection, Ray-Ban, Gigi Hadid x Vogue Eyewear, Oliver Peoples, Prada, Miu Miu.

The remarkable thing about tiny 90s sunglasses is there are a variety of options within the trend. For example, there are some extenuated cat eye shapes or round or oval styles. Go with a tiny frame that is opposite to your face shape, for example if you have more angular features go with a more oval frames e.g. Ray-Ban, if you have a rounder face shape go with a more rectangular frames e.g. Vogue Eyewear x Gigi Hadid.

Remix: Are there other trends we should be looking out for this Fashion Week?

Francesca: Another trend to look out for is 70s oversized round frames.  A celebration of a fashion trend inspired to the '70s and the '80s that brings back in vogue old styles reinvented through the creative vision of each brand. Key brands we are seeing this in include Prada, Bulgari and Dolce & Gabbana.

An oversized round frame suits people with squarer and heart shapes faceshapes. The oversized round face can soften out more angular features.

Remix: What is a timeless sunglass style that suits every face shape?

Francesca: For a timeless pair of sunglasses look for a subtle cat-eye. When looking for sunglasses like this, look for frames without too many exaggerated angles or curvature.

Brands that with these styles include Oliver Peoples, Prada, Dolce & Gabbana and Michael Kors.

Remix: How should you pick a sunglass frame and lens colour for your skin/hair/eye colours?

Francesca: People have either cool (blue-based) or warm (yellow-based) colouring and everyone looks best in their own colour base. The main factors that determine the best colour palette are the colours of the skin, eyes and hair.

Are you warm or cool? Knowing the answer will help you easily select frame colours.

• Skin tone is the prime element in determining colouring. All complexions fall into one of two colour bases — blue (cool) or yellow (warm). A cool complexion has blue or pink undertones, and a warm complexion has a "peaches and cream" or yellow cast. Olive skin is considered cool because it is a mixture of blue and yellow.
• Eye colours usually are a secondary element in determining colouring because of the many variations of eye colour. For example, blue eyes can range from a cool almost-violet to a pale blue-grey, which is warm. Brown eyes can vary from a light cider shade (warm) through a medium-brown to a cool almost-black.
• Hair colours also are considered warm or cool. Strawberry blond, platinum, blue-black, white, salt-and-pepper and "dishwater" brown are cool. Warm hair colours include golden blond, flat black, brown-gold, "carrot" and "dirty" grey.

Once you have determined whether you are "warm" or "cool," you can find the eyeglass frame colours to suit you the best.

Some examples of frame colours best for warm colouring are: camel, khaki, gold, copper, peach, orange, coral, off-white, fire-engine red, warm blue and blond tortoise.

For cool colouring, the best eyeglass frame hues are black, rose-brown, blue-grey, plum, magenta, pink, jade, blue and demi-amber (darker) tortoise.

The best advice on all fronts would be go into one of our Sunglass Hut stores and ask for advice from our trained sales associates who will be able to find you the perfect pair of glasses!

Imagery: Sunglass Hut