Oversized glasses are this fall’s big eyewear trend

It’s first things first for Sharon Grasso, 56, of Huntington, as in for starters, before getting dressed, she picks a pair of eyeglasses to don for the day.

“I build my outfits around my glasses, and sometimes I even match my lipstick to the lens,” she says.

Grasso certainly has plenty to choose from: Between her progressive prescriptions and her sunglasses she owns in excess of 30 pairs. Some are colorful, others ornate. Many feature custom lens tints, but virtually all of them are gigantic.

“It’s really an addiction. I started wearing them because they are a ‘look’ and cool, but also I can really see in them because I have a bigger field of vision,” explainssays Grasso,— who owns Permanent Makeup and Age Defying Aesthetics skin spa clinic in Woodbury. It’s a matter of form and function for her. “I cannot see without them. And honestly, besides looking cool, I want to embrace being in my 50s, stand out and look fabulous.”

While it’s commonplace to see celebrities wearing sci-fi-sized shades ostensibly in a quest for anonymity, regular Long Islanders — both men and women — are unabashedly joining the supersize fray to flaunt, among other things, their style and enhance their vision. Grasso purchases many of her specs at high-end optical retailer Optyx, which has 10 stores on Long Island. More than half the frame inventory at Optyx falls into the oversized category, according to Johayra Vitale, the company’s chief operating officer. “People are choosing styles that not only elevate their look but also provide broader protection for eye health. It’s a win-win for both fashion and wellness,” she says.

Adds Dr. Alice Mann, a veteran optometrist there, “When fitted with the right lenses, oversized frames allow us to incorporate protective enhancements — UV, blue-light, anti-reflective or photochromic coatings. Because the lens surface is so much larger, these treatments will be more effective and comprehensive.”

Size matters

But bigger is not always better, says Jodie Feist, an optician and the owner of Spectacular Eyewear + Eyeglass House in Plainview, who wears a large frame herself, and where about 30% of the frames are oversized. “If you have a giant frame and a higher prescription, they’re going to slip down, making them very hard to adjust, and the lens is going to be thick. You can only go so thin. It’s going to look awful.” But she adds, “For lower prescriptions, we love the fashion of it.”

As do many, like Mary Wilson, 37, an editorial producer from Bay Shore who wears both sizeable sunglasses and prescription glasses. “I feel like, for me, oversized is an extension of my personal style. They’re always more glam, and I’m always going to be leaning into the more glam side of life,” she says adding that her mom calls her Liberace because of her dramatic glasses.

For Dr. Jeannette Graf, a dermatologist in Great Neck, her readers are part of a fashion statement, and instead of opting for classic slim ones, she goes for a bold fashion statement. “I do need glasses for magnification in my line of work,” she says. And there are benefits to larger frames. “I think most glasses offer UV protection, larger lenses cover more area and darker lenses prevent squinting,” hence she says easing up on the dreaded crow’s feet.

Guys are all in, too. Anderson Medeiros, 50, a hairstylist at Aqua Salon in Hewlett, says “I just love oversized glasses,” and believes he has about 30 pairs, both prescription and sunnies. “I feel like the first thing people see is your face and hair and it should all go with your outfit. I do believe I have a bigger face, and it fits bigger glasses.” Among his favorites, a pair by Porsche that he purchased at Optyx and added a gradient tint of purple and pink.

Big money for big glasses

Style, in the case of eyewear, can come at quite a price, especially those branded with well-known designer names. “They’ve become a status symbol like the designer handbag,” says beauty expert Krista Bennett DeMaio, 45, of Huntington, who offers fashion and beauty tips and finds on her Instagram site, @prettylocal.li. “They’re still expensive but cheaper than a bag,”

Maybe, but Grasso says she’s spent $1,400 on Cartier frames and an additional $500 for custom lenses at Optyx. That said, she admits, “I have bought very inexpensive frames as cheap as $19 at Amazon, and even purchased frames from eBay. The problem is they typically either cannot exchange the lenses in them, or it’s not worth putting in $500 lenses, which is why I ended up going with the more expensive brands.” Wilson’s big splurge was her beloved Prada sunglasses for $520, but she also has some that cost her $10 at a local beauty supply store. Then there are her day-to-day large Chopard frames that ran a hefty $840 without lenses — on sale.

“They can never be too big, I absolutely love them,” says petite Ashlee White, of Roslyn, the former star of the Bravo’s reality TV series “Princesses: Long Island,” who regularly plunks down between $100 and $400 for gigantic shades. “I’m a designer girl and I think they look so glamorous.”

DeMaio has no problem revealing that some of her favorite sunglasses are “cheapies” from Target, though she’s been liking a pair from Freyrs eyewear that cost just under $100. “The dupes have gotten so good, it’s hard to tell the difference and I find that I either break them or lose them. In this stage of my life the cheaper ones are fine,” she says.

Whatever the cost, she offers one little inherited beauty tidbit regarding the trend. “I come from a long line of vain women,” she says. “My grandmother was so, so glam and she always said, ‘If you must go out without makeup, put on some lipstick and a really big pair of glasses.’” Point taken.

An earlier version of this story incorrectly stated that Permanent Touch Cosmetics and Age Defying Aesthetics was a medical spa.