Sunglasses - buy expensive or cheap? What do you do?

[SerendipityAlways]

I badly need a pair of sunglasses - would be happy to spend a few pounds on a good pair but then wondering if this is such a good idea as I will invariably drop/scratch them, sit on them/lose them. Then if I buy a cheap and cheerful pair from Next etc, they never seem to look as good. Wonder if I should bite the bullet and just invest in a good pair which may last the term overall and be a better investment. Perhaps moving towards the idea now of spending more and buying less if you get my drift!

Just wondering what you other MNs do - buy a cheap pair each Summer or splash the cash on a designer pair? Any specific brand recommendations would also be useful as I'm completely clueless in this area. Live rurally so online recommendations appreciated!

I can't buy expensive ones, as I know they will get sat on/lost/scratched/crushed by maurauding toddlers. I always have a few pairs on the go as well - one for garden, one in buggy pocket, one spare, one in car - otherwise I'd always be forgetting where they are.

I sometimes see pricey ones I love but I've never caved yet. I tend to spend about £20-30 at Boots and I also always check in other shops that have them, just in case I see a pair I love that are fairly cheap (then I snap them up). But I do have a mid-range pair, £50 from Boden, because I loved the shape and colour so much, but I really try to look after those ones.

Cheap. I lose them.

Boden ones (mine are green) They also have some other funky-looking ones at a mid-range price.

I have one cheapo pair from monsoon sale...but I don't use them, can't see anything!

Could I just ask why people wear sunglasses, I mean, in general? Is there a requirement to for ones optical health?

I have never really understood it.

Thankyou!

cheap from accessorise, if you can afford it get some nice ones though, don't get the ones with massive logos on them though they're tack

people seem to use them more as headbands don't they?

I get a migraine in the sun without wearing sunnies! Like all the suggestions so far..

Fliight I wear them as I use contact lenses, and somehow the lenses coupled with the sun affect my eyes and make them water. They get really sensitive.

I love sunglasses from Accessorise. I also picked a nice pair in H&M last year.

I bought some expensive ones two years ago, well actually DH did for my birthday. I haven't lost them, broken them or scratched them and I'm really glad that I've got them. The previous couple of years I had a variety of cheap and cheerfull ones, which I lost etc. More importantly I feel that I can get away with less expensive clothes if I have better accessories like glasses, watch, handbag.

buy cheap every year, no more than a tenner. My glasses get scratched, stuffed in the bit on the car door, stretched across the top gf my head.

COULD NOT BUY a Gucci pair costing £200. just couldn't. folk who do are FOOLS

Marks and Dotty P's for me

Ah thankyou PP...I always feel self conscious in them though as if people might think I am avoiding eye contact, or trying to look super cool or something

plus as already mentioned the inability to actually see through them. I'm rubbish, seriously

I've got a pair from Accessorise and a pair from M&S for this summer.

The only expensive pair I've ever bought ended up at the bottom of the sea

yyt hey break so easily imo or maybe tis just my care of them is lacking...

I think I love you, Cybil.

I can't walk in a straight line in sunglasses

I have great raybans which were about £60 (bit discounted as they were from my opticians - Black & Lizar which have a good range). Again I wear contacts which increases the brightness/reflection of light and I really, really need them to be comfortable (and frequently fail to remove them to speak to people which seems terribly rude but it easier than squinting and wiping away tears).

well at least buy some that dont make your vision impaired.

I stand there in the shop like a nodding donkey bobbing my head up and down checking my horizontals and verticals.

theres nowt worse than a pair that makes you feel you are walking down a slope all the time

So Accessorize, DPs, M/S, H and M so far - any other recommendations? (Do have a Monsoon nearby so can check that out - all others miles away!)...

I buy cheap ones every year. I have this very unfortunate capability of sitting on sunglasses from quite a young age. I am quite jealous of my friend's sunglasses- £2 primark.

I love sunglasses. Have a pair from Next & few pairs from H&M I'm happy to wear in London but when I'm in proper strong sun abroad they're just not good enough and my eyes get sore and water.

I have had a pair of Dior glasses for 16 years and find that the more expensive ones are hardier and do the job better. Also make me feel nicer. I have a collection though and admit to a mild obsession.

If you want glasses you can use as a hairband etc then get plastic frames. Get a hard case whatever you do (if they don't come in one River Island have them). Worth a look in TKMaxx if you have one near and are open to seeing what they have.

I bought a designer pair for about £250 back in 2002. I have looked after them and they are still as new. I wear them lots every summer. If they are not on my face though they are always in their case to protect from scratches. I think they'll easily serve a good few years yet as I still love the style and they are in perfect nick. So cost per wear has worked out really well.

'Could I just ask why people wear sunglasses, I mean, in general? Is there a requirement to for ones optical health?'

If you're spending time outside then sunglasses (proper ones conforming to EU standards) will really protect your eyes from UV light which causes cataracts later in life.

It's especially important if you work on or around water (where the reflection and glare can also enhance the effect) or in high altitude glaciated environments where snow blindness can be brought on by even a few hours of exposure to sun without protection (category 4 to 5).

I've also read that squinting all the time (either through not wearing them, or wearing cheap ineffective ones) can bring on crow's feet. I've no idea if there's any proper evidence of this though...

I have a pair of Prada sunglasses that I bought pre-dc, so at least 7yrs ago.
Despite me losing/breaking almost everything else, they are still going strong and actually suit me.
I also wear contact lenses and since having DC find that my eyes water all the time when there is a glimmer of sun.

I have an armani pair which I bought 7 years ago in preparation for our honeymoon (which was in Mauritius & Dubai so we knew we'd be getting really strong sun.) I now have 2 small children, but they are still good as new. I don't really like glasses, and have quite a small face so feel uncomfortable in a lot of sunglasses as I just don't think they suit me. The great thing about having a decent pair is I know they suit my face and I don't need to go through the whole searching thing every year! They are rimless which means I can drive in them too (frames always seems to annoy me when I'm driving!) and as we live in the far north of the UK where we often get strong sunlight in the afternoons in the winter it's important that I can drive in them all year round. They were £140 and worth every penny. My husband wears Oakleys which are even more expensive but as he wears normal glasses for driving he has to have prescription ones so it's important to have decent ones as they get a lot of use.

Buy prescription - this year they are red or dead. Normally i don't spend that much but name loving DH was with me

am walking disaster area - always buy cheap as i get through 4/5 pairs a year - breaking or loosing them - would be heartbroken if I'd spent a lot of money on them