I was very much a brick and mortar shopper before I met my fiance. I wanted to try things on and hold in my hand before purchasing. We live in a somewhat rural area, our nearest mall takes 25 minutes of interstate driving to reach and once you arrive the pickings are a little slim. I think he might have began preferring online shopping when he realized he could shop from the convenience of his bed, at any time of day, without having to interact with anyone. Everyone has those days right, where you need something from the store but you don’t really feel like being around people?

Ever since I’ve known him he’s had these thick, black framed glasses that make him look like a HUGE IT nerd. I’ve always loved them on him. I was blown away when he told me the price $30. I have needed glasses since I was in middle school and they had never been less than $60. I remember my first pair of glasses-I got them at the optician inside our local Walmart. I remember afterward walking around and being able to see everything so clearly. Nothing was blurry anymore. My mom still tells me about the intense mom-guilt she felt after hearing me walk around the whole store saying, “Everything is so clear. I can see that from way over here!”

Fast forward a few years, I was telling myself when it was time to buy my next pair of glasses I’d try Zenni Optical Eyeglasses. That opportunity presented itself a few months back when I lost my glasses. I held out hoping to find them but after several weeks of dry eyes in the wintertime I placed an order. I knew I wanted to get thicker frames, I have always chosen very subtle frames in neutral colors. I’d always loved Liz Lemon’s glasses but every time I tried them on in the store I was too self conscious about the bold frames and I’d hang them back up on the shelf and go with a pair nearly identical to my last pair.

Because they know its difficult to “see” the glasses on your face they have a nifty feature that allows you to upload a photo of yourself to virtually try on frames. I bypassed this, choosing a thick-rimmed style that was slightly smaller than my fiance’s. (We pulled up his last order to check the dimensions before proceeding) Once you choose the glasses you have to check your latest prescription to answer questions about prism values and pupillary distance. Don’t worry, that info should be on your prescription somewhere. Then you move onto lens. I got the base option without add-ons. I wanted to see what a $30 pair of glasses would be like quality wise.

I knew they’d be plastic frames, which was a slight adjustment from a lifetime of metal ones. What I didn’t count on how often I’d be pushing them back up my nose-that was pretty irritating. Metal frames have the nearly invisible pads that clamp onto your nose. My dad has permanent indentations from his. While those pads leave marks they’re great at keeping your glasses on your nose. Another thing I figured out when I went without any lens add-on is how easily they smudge. I have to clean them thoroughly every time I wear them. My fiance pointed out I could have sprung for better, smudge-resistant lenses. My advice to you would be spring for smudge-resistance lenses. I hardly noticed smudges on my previous eyeglasses, all of which I believe had glass lenses, but with these, one smudge noticeably impairs vision.

Overall though they’re a solid pair of glasses without a hefty pricetag. Here are my tips to avoid some of the issues I faced: Spring for nicer lenses and look for metal frames with pads to prevent slipping and more readjusting (I think this is a part of the reason I have such bad smudges) If you’re not concerned about these minor issues and are in need of a pair, by all means I would recommend Zenni!