Four fabulous frames from Beausoleil

French frame designer Frédéric Beausoleil of Lunettes Beausoleil never fails to provide something of note in one of his collections. I love this top avaitor spectacle frame - note the graduated shade in the frame moving out either side of the centre.

Lindberg 2010 glasses: titanium, acetate and no frames at all

One of the first signs of a good optician is that they stock Lindberg, a Danish framemaker renowned for its top-drawer, lightweight, minimal eyewear with no screws in the hinge.

We begin with Lindberg Strip (model 9531), which features a very feminine, mild "granddad" shape. Next an Acetanium (model 1232) with a terrific tortoiseshell-like colour and finally...

...We don't feature many rimless frames on Eye Wear Glasses, but there is always an exception (model 98).

Theo scores a hat-trick with Trilby, Panama, Gatsby and more...

Often when I hear about themed eyewear collections my eyes roll upward and a semi-audible "tut" may be detected.

And that is of course because they're so often a sign a desperation, a lack of good ideas. Not with my little Belgian friends at Theo though, oh no.

Every collection from Theo is different, and Theo's HatStyles is elegantly so.

My recent Scandinavian tour (Iceland, and Denmark particularly) highlighted a large, minimalist, aviator-inspired, old-school granddad spectacle style that may become the retro-look of choice in 2011. And Theo joins in here a little, but only with a clever tip of the hat.

Here we feature Gatsby (top-to-bottom), Panama and Trilby. Designed by Patrick Hoet, they feature a single outline frame that holds the lenses, and each design relates directly to the hat of the same name. There's Stetson and Borsalino too - visit the Theo website for more...

Why do oldschool granddad glasses look so good?

I don't know. It's by no means a particulalry new thing. Alexis Taylor, the lead singer of Hot Chip has been wearing his for a few years.

But I think this picture illustrates how great they can look - thanks to djalankin and his girlfriend for the picture.

I've written about this image before in the context of Mykita Lite glasses, some of which have similar eyeshapes but using lighter material. As Mykita stated then, its Oda and Ulf styles (below) are aimed at the over 60s and at a younger generation.

With vintage and retro style dominating eye fashion so much, in particular with the popularity of the aviator in recent years, this style has turned the corner from the Hot Chip geek chic and will slowly enter the mainstream. So far we've seen big acetate frames becoming a must-have accessory (e.g. Prism) but look out for the metals...