prada or chanel sunglasses

[buffalosdonthavewings]

so my OH wants to buy me a pair of sunglasses for my birthday, I've never bought anything more expensive than river island sunglasses in the past .
The reason why is because I do wear sunglasses all the time and the cheaper oena break so easily, I want something that will last me with regards to how they look, nothing too trendy that will look stupid in two years time.
I've seen some gorgeous leopard prada ones but I feel as though chanel is timeless.
what do think?
any recommendations please?

i will try and put the link to the prada ones up later, it won't let me do it on my phone

I've got Tom Fords, which I like.
Go and try on loads and see what suits you. Lovely birthday present.

I've owned both and they are crap I have to say. Look lovely but the lenses are usually poor.

I've stared buying ran ban (their expensive line), Costa and Dragon Jam. They have polarised lenses which are important as I live near the sea and much better UV protection.

Honestly, when I put my (beautiful) 'fashion' glasses on I can't wear them anymore.

Ray Ban.

Thank you I'll have a look at Tom Ford and ray ban now, thanks for the tip about the lenses I never would've thought they would be poor considering how much they cost.

I know! I spent a STUPID amount of money on some beautiful Prada ones that dh kept saying were awful. We were on holiday a while back and I complained of my eyes hurting and he made me put his Costas on. I was at how well I could see!

Have to agree with PP. I admit to a bit of an obsession with designer sunglasses and have owned most makes. Have trouble going through the airports without picking up another pair. However, I tend to stick to Ray Ban now. Have Tom Fords too but sidearm snapped when I dropped them on the floor so not so happy with them.

Also look at Maui Jim, Revo and SALT for top quality lenses

Tom Ford are actually the only pairs I've ever broken. To be fair I sat on both and I'm a bit of a lump.

Oh yes Revo. Will check the others too.

Chanel - crap - agree re lenses.

Gucci - crap - again lenses.

Ray Ban - great.

Guess - surprisingly good.

Last year I had to get varifocals so went (for now) with Specsavers own brand and they are great.

I worked for a while in the optical industry and you would not believe the mark up on sunglasses, or glasses in general.

Maui Jim, Seregeti - for driving, Persol, all have brilliant lenses. Maui Jim will fix you glasses if you break them.

Brown lens will give you a sharper focus than a green/grey.

I have some gorgeous chanel sunglasses that I have had for years, they bring me joy everytime I even look at the case

That said I mainly wear my prescriptive sunglasses from Specsavers now in the summer, I love the design of them.

I have lots of pairs of Chanels and some have lasted for many years and have travelled all over the world with me - they are definitely not timeless though. My current favourites are Bulgari and the lenses are mostly definitely better. I would never wear Prada as a label and I detest Ray Bans.

Having done some more research it seems as though some of the chanels have polarised lenses- those of you who said they were crap,were they non polarised lenses?
There's a couple of Ray bans that I like so I'm going to try them on when I can.
I do need a pair that will last me some years otherwise I can't justify spending that much money.

Maui Jim (don't choose frameless ones ), Seregeti (best lenses ever and still going strong is a little battered, 15 years later) or Rayban. Get the best lenses you can afford and frames that suit your face rather than fashion.

I have a couple of pairs of Chanel frames for everyday glasses but agree re the sunglasses being awful. Raybans are invincible - the aviators in the car must be 5/6 years old and are still going strong.

I have Chanel ones I bought about 25 years ago. Still going strong and I LOVE them.

I love my Ray-Ban round tortoise shells, dkny cats eyes and ck flexible titanium metal transitional lens sunnies. Chanel ones don't have very good lenses imho and Prada frames I have found don't tend to last.

There's some beautiful LV ones but I think they're a bit out of my budget .
I'm glad I started this thread as I was about to let my DH spend some serious money on me.

I'd be more inclined to go with a brand that specialises in eye-wear, rather than a fashion brand. The eye-wear brands spend their money on R&D for the lenses and frames as it is their core product (similarly Specsavers and Vision Express etc use good quality optical glass for their specs); fashion brands sell accessories purely to allow the masses to buy into the brand at a relatively affordable price point - lots of people can spend £200 on something, but not £2000+ on something. You may find some are better than others, but I'd bet there isn't much difference between the lens quality of a pair of £30 Boots sunglasses and a pair of Prada / Chanel / Gucci sunglasses, whereas a pair of Ray-Ban's etc will likely be superior.

I have Oakley sunglasses, which are probably not be the style you are after. I love the lenses though, mine are their black iridium lenses and they are so clear with little to no distortion and very little glare. I wear them pretty much every day and have done for the last 18 years.

The most important thing is how they look on you. I suggest going to fry some on before you buy.

Nobody can choose sunglasses for you except you, you have to try on as many as you can to see what suits you. But agree with many pps - Rayban or a specialist company is far better than the 'fashion' ranges, even if they are a designer house.

One other tip - I've owned glasses from pretty much every brand you can think of - Rayban are the best in my opinion; I loved Chanel for the style but not the quality; but the best fashion glasses I've ever had were from Chloe, which I've had for years. They have some seriously desirable designs atm, worth a look over Praia and Chanel, I would say.