lines and launches

Give Me20

Amy Spiezio

SMILING eyes

FACE A FACE PRESENTS WOOW COLLECTION Adding extra fun to eyewear, Face à Face has created a new line, the WOOW collection. Imagined by Nadine Roth and Pascal Jaulent, cofounders of Face à Face, the new line lies between traditional and casual, chic and off-beat, with what the designers describe as a “trendy London” feel. The WOOW style is designed for women and men with a sense of humor. Featuring a message in the end tip of the frame, the eyewear is intended to make the wearer smile first thing in the morning, company representative note. Developed by the Design Studio under the direction of Pascal Jaulent and produced and distributed by the Face à Face teams, the WOOW collection consists of 14 acetate models and six metal frames, each available in six colors. The frames are characterized by a unicolor front and “sleeved” two-toned temples. The endpiece has a soft, rounded metallic insert covered by a thin layer of resin, which is inspired by the keys of old typewriters. INFO: faceaface-paris.com

KIRK ORIGINALS LAUNCHES TWENTY COLLECTION—STRIPES

In celebration of its first 20 years, Kirk Originals has launched the Twenty Collection—Stripes limited edition eyewear. Leaning on the core values of the brand, the ophthalmic eyewear celebrates color in a retro style. With all things British coming to the fore, the collection espouses the quintessentially British look in shapes that people can relate to, but in a style that gives a nuance of difference, the unique idiosyncrasy that we have come to expect from Kirk Originals, company representatives say.

Each individual frame has its own ‘20 year’ badge of authenticity hand-sunk into the temple tip and the Kirk Originals signature inside the frame, the benchmark of its quality. The collection’s classic shapes are developed and detailed to give a unique identity which is both contemporary and a nod in the direction of the brand heritage.

The collection hints at early Kirk Originals acetate styling from the ‘90s but in a modernist context. Named after famous personalities of 1992 when Kirk Originals was born, the collection offers six styles— Paul, Rodney, Carlos, Fernando, Lennart, Roberta—in four colors: vermillion, ice, jet, and cobalt.

INFO: kirkoriginals.com

Nature’s Best

MOREL UNVEILS NÉPENTHE COLLECTION

Koali’s new Népenthe collection from Morel focuses on the pitcher plant, also known as Népenthe plant. The mysterious carnivorous, tropical plant with a vase shape is the inspiration behind Koali’s most recent grouping.

The frames’ temples evoke the silhouette and movement of the pitcher plant with two delicately worked stainless steel strands which are interlaced in a two-toned spiral. The clean temple lines set off the handcrafted acetate fronts of the collection’s rimmed and semi-rimless models. Népenthe creates contrasts with bright pops of color against more discreet shades in 24 combinations, including silver/ice blue, brown/sea green, plum/coral, brown/old rose, purple/lime green, black/grey, and brown/turquoise.

The six stainless steel fronts (three rimmed and three semi-rimless) and three acetate fronts are available in a wide range of sizes from 51 to 55.

INFO: 800-526-8838, morel-france.com

COOL GRAPHICS

LIBERTY LAUNCHES GRAPHIC SNOW COLLECTION

Liberty Sport has added a collection of graphic pieces to the Rx Performance Snow Sunglasses. “We’ve had such a strong response to our graphic designs on our protective sports eyewear, we thought it would be fun to recreate some of exciting designs on our Rx sun performance product,” says Carmine DiChiara, vice president of product development. These designs complement Liberty’s Rx Snow Styles. The plano sun version comes with the Ultimate Snow Lens designed for perceiving changes in terrain while participating in a variety of winter activities. The lens has a base color of gray/green with a blue flash mirror coating. All Ultimate plano sunlenses can be Rx’d through Liberty Sport Labs.

INFO: libertysport.com

Sew Cute

ZYLOWARE’S PROJECT RUNWAY EYEWEAR HITS THE CATWALK Zyloware Eyewear announces the release of Project Runway Eyewear. The collection comprises nine styles and 11 SKUs, and is inspired by the fashion reality TV show “Project Runway.” Debuting in 2004, the three-time Emmy-nominated and Peabody Award-winning competition reality series has become a global hit and remains one of the most-watched reality competition shows on television. Featuring host Heidi Klum, judges Nina Garcia and Michael Kors, and mentor Tim Gunn, whose “make it work” has become a national catch-phrase, “Project Runway” has an eye for spotting fresh talent and creating design stars. “Project Runway” is the number-one competition reality program among women. Zyloware’s president, Chris Shyer, says, “Zyloware has worked with our partners at ‘Project Runway’ to develop an exciting collection, and may just set new eyewear fashion trends with the fresh and colorful eyewear of our launch collection.” Project Runway Eyewear features on-trend shapes and a bold color palette, suitable for women who want fashion-forward eyewear and a high-quality product at an affordable price. Design embellishments such as intricate temple detailing and on-trend color combinations provide the wearer with high-end looks that are inspired by the runway, and that are adaptable to the real world. INFO: 800-765-3700, zyloware.com