Emma Chamberlain knows what she likes.
“The most challenging part of this was making final decisions,” Chamberlain says of her collection of six limited-edition frames. “I definitely experienced major decision fatigue, where I had so many choices, it became hard tomakea decision. One thing was easy, though, and that was the nostalgia factor.”
“We were drawn in naturally, and that just so rarely happens, at least to me anymore as an avid online shopper,” she says. “So it was a very organic discovery.”
The layout of the store and the vast selection kept her happy the whole time she was shopping, and it sparked joy in her that made her fall in love with the brand — and glasses as a whole.
“You can see everything and they’re so welcoming about getting your hands dirty and getting in there and trying on whatever your heart imagines,” she says of the stores. “And as a 14-year-old at the time, it was very rare that I got to go into a store and touch whatever I wanted.”
That day, Chamberlain bought a pair of Durand frames — and in the collection she designed, she has her own take on the Durand because it “obviously had to be included,” she says.
The rest of her collection — which starts at $95 per pair — includes what she calls a “diverse and balanced” group of frames that will appeal to a wide variety of customers, because she wants as many people as possible to be able to wear her glasses. Though she admits that she’s the first person to reach for out-of-the-box fashion pieces and avant-garde silhouettes, she knows that’s not what the everyday consumer will do. Thus, she picked colors that are neutral (with a twist!) and shapes that flatter.
“I like colors that are neutral while still fun, with the one exception being red, because I think that every outfit can use a pop of red,” she says of the colorways you’ll find in her collab. “The colors are subdued, but they’re still exciting. You can’t wear a crazy bright blue pair of frames every day. It’s not always going to work. It might work for some people, but it’s harder to style. I wanted to choose colors that I felt were easier to style on a consistent basis.”
For frame shapes, in addition to the “classic” Durand, she also has the wire-frame Braswell, which she calls “timeless,” and the “statement” Lonnie frame — which she admits are “not that bold” for her but will be for some people.
“That one is a totally approachable shape that can spice up an outfit if you want it to,” she says. “I tried to hit as many aesthetics as I could. Not every pair of glasses out there looks good on everyone. We all have different face shapes, we all have different noses, we all have different ears, we all have a different forehead. Everybody’s so different and glasses look different on everyone.”
“It’s almost like they chose me,” she says of how the humble pigeon became her favorite animal years ago. “I spent so much time in cities with lots of pigeons: New York, Paris. And I think it might’ve been a subconscious thing. It was like, how therapeutic it could be to love something that’s hated but abundant. Now every time I see a pigeon, guess who gets a smile on their face? Me. Everyone else is like, ‘Ew, a pigeon.’ Not me. I’m like, ‘Wow, what a gorgeous little animal and what a little buddy this is for me.’ ”
When the shoot was coming together, there was quite literally “no other option” for her costar, she shares. “It was the perfect mascot.”
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source: people.com
