Eyewear from Italy

Italy’s large production of acetate is one of the things that makes it an optical wonderland. Made from wood or cotton cellulose, it is prized by high-end eyeglasses designers.

This material has aesthetic qualities superior to ordinary plastic: the pigments can be integrated directly into the material while it is being created, and possible color nuances and combinations are almost infinite. While glossy, it can also be made duller, allowing a play of shadows and light with various degrees of transparency.

Okki Factory, one of Italy’s oldest glasses manufacturers still in operation, makes bright, colorful frames mainly in acetate; however, these frames have a little something more: fabric inserts! Her models seek to capture joie de vivre and good humor using original patterns and shapes.

Other brands are inspired by Italy’s mountain ranges, especially the Tyrol. Hapter draws its ideas from the Dolomites and creates retro frames inspired by mountaineers. Handmade, Hapter glasses are the fruit of traditional know-how combined with a constant search for visual and tactile satisfaction.