Blasting some massive insecurities here, because screw insecurities, right?! In a perfect world, there would be no bullying, no fear, and no self-shaming… but what’s good without the bad, I suppose. I’m dedicating this post to combat that – combat all the crap you went through in high school, all the put-downs that have been dealt your way, and combat all the negativity that will surely come in the future.
Growing up, we almost learn that differences are bad and that conformity is good. But in our millennial world of innovation and creativity, our upbringing and that philosophy only stiffens our success. I used to have such an unhealthy insecurity about the fact that I wore and needed glasses. In elementary school, I use to force myself to yawn just to add a tear to my eyes (because somehow it gave me a few moments of eyesight clarity). All this just so that I didn’t have to admit that I was a “four eyes”.
Although I grew out of the fear of being called names, somehow I never took the initiative to just get a pair of glasses. I ended up living a bunch of years without being able to see properly. When I finally did get a pair of glasses (totally out of necessity), I hated wearing them unless I had to. Perhaps I wasn’t used to it, or perhaps I was still holding on to that childhood insecurity. Either way, I would struggle in meetings, couldn’t see in class (because I’d totally forget about my glasses), and overall, gave myself a hard time.
With the start of my blog, I started to really get to know myself better and feel more comfortable in my own skin. I stopped caring what people thought and focussed more on how I felt. This meant investing in some nice lenses. I ended up picking up a pair of Chanel glasses I absolutely adored… but then lost 3 months later. Go figure. I’m such a clumsy klutz, it doesn’t surprise me that I lost them so quickly.
Ever since, I’ve gone back to struggling. I didn’t want to invest in another pair of expensive glasses only to lose them again.
Then I got introduced to Eye Buy Direct. I had heard of online boutiques for glasses before, but never thought much of them. When I actually browsed their site, I realized there were so many on-trend glasses I loved. Not only that, but they make buying prescription glasses so easy. No more sitting in a “glasses store” awkwardly spending time with a salesperson that just wanted to close the sale.
It literally took me about 5 minutes to process my request. I picked up 3 glasses – one black frame (called “Shade”, Striped Granite), one beige frame (called Prism, Chesnut), and one pair of on-trend sunnies… ALL WITH PRESCRIPTION. That meant no more squinting. I wanted to get a pair to match any look I styled (giving myself no excuse to not wear my glasses).
When the glasses came in the mail, I was so excited to try them on. I was surprised as to how well they fit. With my typical asian nose, I normally get nervous about ordering glasses (with the fear that they’d slide right off my face). The descriptions on Eye Buy Direct (and their cool interactive model-images) give you a good sense of what glasses will suit you and your face, which I loved. It helped me pick the right ones for my facial structure.
They also have a 14-day fit and style guarantee. So if they don’t fit well, they’ll replace them with ones that do. How cool right?! And no pressure from a pushy salesperson either.
These were also my first pair of sunnies that were prescription and holy crap do they make a difference. Wearing sunnies without prescription always made my vision even more distorted, it was like waking up to a new world with these pretty “Neapolitans”.
My total for all of them was only $300, which was much cheaper than that one Chanel pair (that didn’t even last me a year). This was definitely a guilt-free purchase.
I also added the feature of “Digital Protection” since I’m at a computer for 12 hours of every day. They protect your eyes from the blue light that some screens emit, and block those headaches you get when you’re looking at a screen for too long. They’ve literally been my saviour at work.
I wanted to style the looks to show you how versatile glasses can be. I honestly feel liberated by how they actually compliment looks. They make me want to wear my glasses, not hide them in my purse.
All in all, I feel so much more confident in my glasses. I don’t feel like I’m hiding them anymore. They’re also so cool and on-trend, I get compliments about how chic they look all the time. They make for a good meeting-convo-piece.
Whether you’re a four-eyes or not, insecurities, I’ve realized, only hold us back. So ditch em’. You’re better without em’!
Do you wear glasses? Were you ever insecure about it growing up?
