MyOpticalShop.com Review (Rimless!)

For those of you who can't quite get behind the heavier (by comparison) plastic frames and adore the lightweight wonder that is a titanium rimless style, this post is for you. Myopticalshop.com may have a limited selection of styles, but they do rimless very, very well, and all for a pittance. I paid $67 for my glasses, with hi-index 1.61 lenses, A/R coating, and shipping included. For titanium, air-locked, rimless frames, that's unheard of. Luckily for you, now you've heard of it!

Tortoise & Blonde At-Home Try-On Review

I was very impressed by the frames I received from Tortoise & Blonde. All five pair felt great, none of them were stiff or creaky, and none were crooked or misshapen. Having now ordered from three of the start-up $100-ish retailers, I must say that T&B had the best dedicated women's frames. The Laurel and Lola were decidedly feminine, and the Melrose worked well as girly choice, too. The more ambiguous "unisex" frames were also great. Overall, very pleased. Just wish my order had arrived sooner!

  

Coastal.com Purchase Review

Much has already been said by bloggers (and others) about Coastal.com, and I wanted to see if my experience would go well as a "regular" buyer. I bought my glasses through the website like any other customer, and overall I have no complaints. I actually have a few raves. 

The glasses were delivered in five days. Yes, you read that correctly. FIVE.

I ordered them through the "First Pair Free" promo in which you only pay shipping, and they cost me a few cents shy of $15. For designer frames. And optically perfect lenses. 

Pardon me while I do a happy dance. Feel free to watch the video while you wait. 

Needless to say, I was pleased as punch with my Coastal experience. Obviously, the prices are much higher when purchasing frames that are not part of the free promo, but Coastal does seem to have sales and special offers on a regular basis, and the cost is still much lower than what you'd pay for designer frames elsewhere (in most cases). You can always do an online search for coupon codes, as well. 

If I have any small, nit-picky, vaguely negative thing to say about Coastal, it is that they did not send me an email confirmation when I ordered. They waited until my glasses were ready to ship to send me a shipping notification and a receipt. So I wasn't quite sure my order had gone through until I got that. Also, the place to enter your promo code is in the next-to-last step in the order process, after you have entered your address but before you enter payment info. That was kind of annoying.

If you are considering ordering from Coastal, here are a few tips:

1. Create an account and save all of the frames you like as "favorites." The free pair promo frames change, so just because the ones you like are not offered for free now does not mean they won't be in the future.

2. Use the stellar size-finding features on the lefthand menu. If you know you look good in 52-18-135 frames, Coastal lets you search for those by size. I love this feature. 

3. When it says "low stock," it means it. I lost out on a pair of frames because I figured they'd be there later. Coastal is WAY more popular than you realize, so if you know a pair is perfect for you, don't wait. 

4. If you find a pair of frames you like in a physical store but cannot afford them, make a note of the brand, style and size. If they are a major brand, you may seem them on Coastal at some point.  

  

Warby Parker At-Home Try-On Review

Although I was hoping to have frames from Benji Frank, Warby Parker, and Tortoise & Blonde all at the same time, that did not happen. Oh well! Here's what's covered in the video:

I ordered frames from Warby Parker on July 17 and received them July 25. The frames arrived via and must be returned via UPS (at no charge).

Pros: The box included an invoice to remind me which frames/colors I had ordered. The colors were great and unusual. The Sibley glasses were particularly fab.

Cons: It took more than a week to get the frames, the frame box was visibly dirty, a few pair were especially "cheap" feeling/creaky/stiff, one pair was very dirty.

Verdict: Warby parker gets style points, but overall the Benji Frank experience was much better.  

Rivet & Sway Review (Please note that this business has closed)

As of June 3, 2014, Rivet & Sway is no longer in business. 

Rivet & Sway belongs in the "boutique startup" category of the online eyeglasses retailer spectrum, but with some significant differences between it and peers such as Warby Parker and Benji Frank. Here are the major distinctions, according to me, at least.

• Rivet & Sway only offers frames for women. 
• Its prices are double those of similar retailers. 
• They offer standard 1.6 high-index lenses (vs. polycarbonate) with all the coatings and even say they'll automatically upgrade you for free to a higher index lens, if your prescription warrants it. 
• You may only select three frames for three days of at-home try-on (vs. five frames for five days or longer). 
• Rivet & Sway does not appear to be involved with a charitable organization.

A review of the at-home try-on experience is detailed in the video. If you want the nitty gritty, keep reading after the video.

My own personal experience with Rivet & Sway was not without its drawbacks. Bear in mind that reviews are solely my opinion and may not be at all indicative of anyone else's experience with the same retailer. I did NOT inform R&S that I was a blogger and purchased the frames through the website like any other customer, for whatever that's worth. 

The short version is that I ordered some at home try-on frames as well as one pair of prescription glasses. There was confusion over my order that delayed the trial frames, and the glasses were never delivered, for reasons unknown. R&S did communicate with me, and I received a refund. 

One other comment is that I have received promotional emails from R&S almost every day. There is no way to opt out of emails once you open an account with them, so be prepared for that.  

I think R&S has a nice frame selection for women, and there are positive reviews for them out there, but with such steep competition in products and price, I think they need to work out some kinks.
   
I wish my experience had gone more smoothly and hope, if you decide to order from them, that yours will be great!               

Zenni Review

Zenni Optical gets lotsa love from online shoppers looking for inexpensive frames, plenty of lens options, and reliable optical quality. I'm a fan because I've ordered from Zenni four times and always been satisfied with the result. The lenses have always been perfect from a prescription/PD standpoint, and the prices are great if you have a rapidly changing prescription or a less-than conscientious spectacle wearer (e.g., a child) for whom you are buying.

Here's what you need to know:

1. Take special care when choosing your frames so that you'll be pleased with what you get. Returning items isn't really a cost-effective option, and Zenni does not offer full refunds. Double check your measurements, use the virtual try-on feature for more success, and remember that you sometimes get what you pay for where the frames are concerned. 

2. It takes two weeks to get your glasses (in the USA). Don't expect them much sooner than that.

3. Zenni doesn't often have big, blowout sales, but if you sign up for the emails or "like" them on Facebook, you will occasionally receive notifications about free shipping or other discounts.
4. Don't rely entirely on the search options to find what you want. Zenni has a massive number of frames, and they aren't always categorized the way you think. I have found some real gems (which did not show up when I filtered my search options) by taking the time to go through ALL of the frames. (Yes, it was a bit tedious because the selection is freakishly large.)
5. Use the "add to favorites" option to keep track of your picks, otherwise you may never be able to find them again. 

Check Out the GSG YouTube Page

I'll be uploading some unboxing videos, etc. to the YouTube page as the blog progresses, but YouTube is already a great source for reviews of some of the sites discussed here. I dug around and tried to find some reviews for you that were not ancient or useless and have grouped them into playlists by retailer. I'll add more as I find them, but in the meantime take a peek by clicking here!