As their name suggests, bifocal eyeglass lenses have two lens powers — one for distance and one for near.

Flat-top or D segment bifocal eyeglass lens
Flat-top bifocal lens (also called a D-seg or straight-top).

Round segment bifocal lens
Round seg bifocal lens.

Franklin or executive bifocal lens
Executive bifocal lens (also called the Franklin bifocal).

The lower half of a bifocal lens contains the near segment for reading and other close-up tasks. The rest of the lens in all our glasses and sunglasses has no correction at all in it, perfect if you have good distance vision, but you can wear them over the top of contacts as well.

Causes of Low Vision

Eye diseases are a common cause of low vision:

  • Hazy, blurry vision can result from cataracts.
  • Blurred or partially obscured central vision is typical of macular degeneration.
  • Diabetic retinopathy causes blind spots, blurriness and visual distortions.
  • Poor peripheral vision is a hallmark of glaucoma.
  • Retinitis pigmentosa reduces peripheral vision and the ability to see in the dark.
  • Light sensitivity and loss of contrast are other symptoms of these and other diseases.

Heredity and eye injuries also can result in low vision.

What To Do About Low Vision

If you have a vision impairment that interferes with your ability to perform everyday activities and enjoy life, your first step is to see an eye care professional for a complete eye exam.

Poor vision that cannot be corrected with eyeglasses or contact lenses could be the first sign of a serious eye disease such as age-related macular degeneration, glaucoma or retinitis pigmentosa.  Or it could mean you are developing a cataract that needs removal. Whatever the case, it’s wise to take action before further vision loss occurs.

The magnified glasses that we sell work in the same way as ready reading glasses but with higher magnification.  They may help with close up work such as reading, hobbies and detailed work like crocheting or model painting.

It’s important not just to go for the highest magnification possible, but instead to look at your prescription and get the nearest magnification to your opticians prescription.  These glasses are manufactured to CE Standards and are tested in house to provide you with an affordable product.   We are unable to test independently as these strengths fall outside normal ranges.  Please be aware of this fact when purchasing.   Should you suffer any headaches, migraines or eye strain whilst using this product you should cease use immediately.

Polarised sunglasses have been popular for years with boaters and fishermen who need to reduce reflected glare from the water surrounding them.

But now that many others who spend time outdoors have discovered the benefits of polarised lenses, interest in these types of sunglasses has soared.

Besides boaters, outdoor enthusiasts who benefit the most from polarised sunglasses include skiers, bikers, golfers and joggers, all who may enjoy a clearer view along with elimination of glare.

These sunglasses can be used for driving and, in fact, can reduce glare from a long, flat surface such as the hood of the car or the road’s surface.

Polarised sunglasses also can be worn indoors by light-sensitive people, including post-cataract surgery patients and those continually exposed to bright light through windows.

How Do Polarised Lenses Work?

Light reflected from surfaces such as a flat road or smooth water generally is horizontally polarised. This means that, instead of light being scattered in all directions in more usual ways, reflected light generally travels in a more horizontally oriented direction. This creates an annoying and sometimes dangerous intensity of light that we experience as glare.

Polarized sunglasses reduce glare reflected off of roads, bodies of water, snow, and other horizontal surfaces.
Polarised sunglasses cut glare and haze so your eyes are more comfortable and you can see better.

Polarised lenses contain a special filter that blocks this type of intense reflected light, reducing glare.

All sunglasses with polarised lenses block 100 percent UV, regardless of the lens material or price of the eyewear (though polarised sunglasses tend to be more expensive than sunglasses without this extra glare-blocking feature).

I’ve watched recent programmes on fake sunglasses, are your sunglasses fake?

We don’t pretend to be Gucci, Prada or anyone else for that matter.  Our sunglasses are well made, and provide full UV protection.  All childrens’ sunglasses are covered to UV400 and have impact resistant lenses.  The rest of our glasses all have UV Protection too, even the clear ones.  Our Lens Tints are categorised from 0 – 4 (clear to dark) and most have acrylic lenses which are impact resistant and give scratch resistancy too.  All CE stamps can be authenticated with our manufacturers certificates upon request and all our glasses are independently tested to relevant UK and European Standards.

What are my options to prevent UV damage to my eyes?

You must wear sunglasses to prevent damage to your eyes. While some contact lenses provide UV protection, they don’t cover your whole eye, so you still need sunglasses.

Also, you may want to consider wraparound sunglasses or look at our fitover sun shield section to prevent harmful UV rays from entering around the frame.

What are bifocal reading sunglasses?

Our Bifocal Sunglasses (and glasses) have two points of focus — one for distance and one for near. The sunglasses have a small area of magnifying lens at the bottom with tinted, non-prescription sunglass above. These are perfect if you want to read by the pool, but often need to look up over the magnified portion to see your kids in the water.

What are full-frame sun readers?

Our Sun Readers are full frame sun readers .  With full reader sunglasses, the entire lens is magnified for a wider line of vision. If you wear reading glasses and like to read outside, garden, fish, or even lunch on an outdoor patio, you know what it’s like to juggle between your sunglasses and readers. Luckily, these will solve this dilemma. If you have any outdoor hobbies that involve up-close work — such as scoring golf or reading a trail map — reading sunglasses can assist you with those tasks.

Yes, Yes and Emphatically Yes.

Kids Need UV Protection Even More Than Adults

The risk of damage to our eyes and skin from solar UV radiation is cumulative, meaning the danger continues to grow as we spend time in the sun throughout our lifetime.

Happy little girl outside, wearing a hat and sunglasses and with sunblock on her face.
This smart little girl is using sunblock and wearing a hat and sunglasses, for the ultimate in sun protection.

With this in mind, it’s especially important for kids to protect their eyes from the sun. Children generally spend much more time outdoors than adults.

In fact, some experts say that because children tend to spend significantly more time outdoors than most adults, up to half of a person’s lifetime exposure to UV radiation can occur by age 18. (Other research cited by The Skin Cancer Foundation says slightly less than 25 percent of our lifetime exposure to UV radiation is sustained during childhood.)

Also, children are more susceptible to retinal damage from UV rays because the lens inside a child’s eye is clearer than an adult lens, enabling more UV to penetrate deep into the eye.

Therefore, make sure your kids’ eyes are protected from the sun with good quality sunglasses. Ours give maximum protection from the sun (UV400). Also, encourage your child to wear a hat on sunny days to further reduce UV exposure.

Are more expensive sunglasses of better quality?

Not necessarily. While expensive sunglasses usually are high quality, you can also get a good pair for under £20 if you’re a careful shopper. Just make sure to check that the lenses provide adequate protection from UV light and are free of distortions.  Always ensure you are purchasing from a supplier that independently tests their stock to current UK and EU Directives and regularly checks incoming stock to ensure those standards.

Explain Tint Categories and UV Protection for me.

These are LENS TINT Categories.  0 = clear/light tint lenses and 4 = darkest tint lenses. VLT = the amount of light allowed through the lens.

  • Category 0; 80-100% VLT (Visable Light Transmittance)
  • Category 1; 46-79% VLT
  • Category 2; 18-45% VLT
  • Category 3; 8-17% VLT
  • Category 4; 3-8% VLT

Cat 0 lenses are either clear or have a very light tint, they are used for safety glasses or spectacles where you need to see clearly what you are doing.

Cat 1 lenses are for casual use, used as a comfort filter in cosmetic and fashion eyewear.

Cat 2 lenses are the most common category to be found in sunglasses, for general use they provide good protection from visible light and from UV rays.  This lens will have a tint which allows through less light than category 1 but more light than category 3

Cat 3 – Provide extra protection from both visible and UV light.  These lenses will usually only allow less than 20% of visible light to penetrate the lens.  This means that they will block out 80%+ of light.

Cat 4 – Provide a high level of protection from visible and UV light.  These lenses are not to be worn when driving as they are too dark.  These lenses will allow less than 10% of light to transmit through the lens.  They are to be used for specific situations only – not for a pair of everyday sunglasses.