Fashion

Warby Parker is Having a Moment

by Erin Mayer

As a longtime glasses-wearer, I am thrilled that eyewear is having a moment. And I mean a big moment. Affordable eyewear brand Warby Parker has sold one million pairs of glasses since being founded in 2010 — 500,000 of which were purchased in the last year. Finally, being called four-eyes is a compliment!

What's even better than glasses being on-trend is the mission behind Warby Parker. The retailer partners with VisionSpring, a non-profit that trains men and women in developing countries how to give basic eye exams and outfit patients with properly fitting glasses. Each month, Warby Parker donates a dollar amount to VisionSpring to outfit someone in need with a pair of glasses (roughly translating to a pair of glasses donated for each pair purchased). That basically means that in addition to selling one million pairs of glasses, they've donated one million pairs. Pretty sweet, right?

This has been a big year for the brand, what with the Karlie Kloss x Warby Parker collection, the opening of several brick-and-mortar locations (they now have five, including a flagship in NYC), and the return of the monocle... okay, so maybe Karlie Kloss had more to do with it than the monocle. That, and the fact that some people are buying 20-30 pairs of the glasses per year, proves that specs are totally in vogue.

Karlie Kloss brings me to my next point, which is that celebs love themselves some Warby Parker. I love when celebrities hop on the "loving something affordable" bandwagon, especially if it means my dark-framed glasses are cool instead of nerdy as hell. Here's a round-up of the Warby Parker's famous fans.

1. Karlie Kloss

This one is a pretty big "DUH!" since she just collaborated with the brand on a sunglasses line. Her line of '70s inspired aviators sunnies is fabulous and still available in time for you to scoop them all up for summer. Now if only we could score the rest of Karlie's wardrobe for such reasonable prices!

2. Emmy Rossum

In this "What's in Your Bag" tweet to Harper's Bazaar, Emmy Rossum reveals that she wears Warby Parker's so she can see! I bet she looks so cute in those red frames.

3. Ali Larter

Ali Larter's travel-style in 2013 included a pair of dark Warby Parkers (they sell sunnies with and without perscription lenses, if you were unaware) with a long navy coat, white trousers, and pointed-toe animal print flats. Why can't we all look that good after a long flight? I blame it on flying coach!

4. Leith Clark

Stylist and former editor of Lula Leith Clark also collaborated with Warby Parker on a line of sweet, quirky eyeglass frames this year. THANKS LEITH, now I want purple speckled glasses so I can look even more like a Manic Pixie Dream Girl than I already do.

5. Ryan Gosling

Swoon.

Images: warbyparker/Instagram, instyleturkiye/Instagram, Warby Parker/Facebook