frame by frame
Eyewear — The perfect accessory
K athy Sheridan enjoys her eye glasses . The owner of two clothing stores , she has about a dozen pairs to mix , match and co-ordinate with the apparel she ’ s wearing . “ I like my frames to match my clothes , just like shoes ,” Kathy explains . “ It ’ s a fashion thing .”
Keeping her eye wear stylish is easy for Kathy because her husband Marc White , who is an optician , owns the Spectacles Vision Centre in Huntsville .
“ She ’ s always getting glasses and always trying them on ,” says Marc , an optician for almost 30 years .
His profession is in his genes . Marc ’ s father , Gerry and his brother , Tim are both opticians . His grandfather , Fred White ran all the labs for Imperial Optical .
Marc operated his optical business in Mississauga for almost 20 years before moving to Muskoka for the laid back lifestyle and friendly attitude of this part of rural Ontario on the doorstep of rugged Algonquin Park .
When friends looking for a house , to open a bed and breakfast business , spotted a heritage home on the Main Street of Huntsville , they urged Marc look at it , suggesting it might be a perfect spot for his store . After all , Marc was in the process of building a cottage about an hour north of town .
“ Once we moved up here we realized we didn ’ t need the cottage any more so we sold it ,” Marc says .
He now has a waterfront home and rents out apartments above his store . His clientele is typical of a small town from late fall until June .
“ Then we have city people . Lots of them ,” he says adding when customers choose eye glasses , Marc likes to find out what his prospective clients might like .
4 5
1 2
“ We just start trying on
3 different shapes , styles and colours .”
Marc will advise what frames work best with the client ’ s prescription . Ultimately , it ’ s the wearer ’ s choice .
“ It ’ s all about the customer ,” Marc says . “ As long as it doesn ’ t interfere with the optics , I ’ m good with it .”
During her recent fitting , Kathy began with a Prodesign 4674 frame made with multi-coloured acetate front and temples .
For her second try , she donned Humphrey ’ s HU2188 glasses in a black metal frame with yellow backing , acetate temples and nose pads .
A classically exotic look came in an OGI 07148 acetate frame . It had tortoiseshell temples and a matt green finish on the front .
A turquoise Kensie Roman pair with metal front and acetate temples complemented her honey blonde hair and the sweater she wore .
Her final try was a rimless Prodesign 4128 frame in pink with laser cut temples .
Kathy chose two favourites for their shape and colour , the Kensie eyeglasses with a turquoise metal frame and matching temples , and the pink Prodesign glasses with laser cut temples .
“ They ’ re both bright and they match my wardrobe ,” she says .
-Walter Franczyk
1 . Prodesign 4128 ; 2 . Optician Marc White & Kathy Sheridan ; 3 . Kensie ; 4 . Humphrey HU2188 ; 5 . OGI 07148 .
42 OPTICAL PRISM | JULY / AUGUST 2013