Customized Glasses: TD Tom Davies Bespoke Eyewear
I first started wearing glasses in 7th grade. I remember sitting around a table in my grandparent’s basement and trying on my cousin’s pair. I could see much clearer with that thin glass in front of my eyes. I told my mom later that day that I thought I needed glasses. I’m not sure she was convinced but she set up an eye appointment nonetheless. Glasses have been my thing ever since.
I would say I’ve had 7 or so pairs of the glasses over the past 12 years. I wasn’t going to wear the same glasses in 7th grade as in 10th or in college so every couple of years when I’d need an updated prescription my mom would allow me to get a new pair of frames. I’ve had the same frames for the past four or so years so I decided it was time to add a new pair into the mix.
The new pair are TD Tom Davies.
Now, I don’t expect too many people to be familiar with the brand. TD Tom Davies is a handmade British eyewear company founded in 2002. I only discovered the brand because I read a lot of random articles and because Ed Sheeran has some TD Tom Davies.
There are currently four stores in London and there are very select stockists in the United States. There is only one store in Pittsburgh authorized to sell TD Tom Davies and that is Oakland Fashion Optical on Craig Street.
TD Tom Davies are bespoke aka custom glasses. There is a website that the stockist log onto and the client gets to customize EVERYTHING. The metal, plastic and horn used. The colors of materials. How thick the frames are to be. What name they want engraved on the inside. The distance of the nose piece. Legit, everything.
I’d done my research online to look at the Ready to Wear options for inspiration. I am not at all creative enough to design glasses from scratch. Plus, I wanted to find something unique. If I was going to spend hundreds on glasses, I wanted to ensure the investment was worth it. The TD412 Col.1102 immediately struck me when I first saw them. I loved the bright orange and teal colors and the large circular frames. I had never had anything like them. For a couple of weeks, I kept coming back to the exact same pair with the exact same colors every time I went on the TD Tom Davies website. It was obvious that I needed them.
I walked into Oakland Fashion Optical with a mission in mind. I browsed the cases and then inquired about the TD Tom Davies. I did not see the style I’d fallen in love with online, so I tried on a few pairs of similar shapes. There were circular pairs with smaller frames and neutral colors. They shape was the closest I could find to what I’d seen online but I was taken aback because they were so different than anything I’d ever owned. I have always had rectangular frames in fairly muted shades: blood red, tortoise shell or black.
The lady working reception at Oakland Fashion Optical was very helpful and once I told her my story and commitment to getting a pair of TD Tom Davies. She went in back to retrieve a large black cloth trifold container filled with dozens of plastic and horn frame options and another case filled with metal options. It was overwhelming. There were so many combinations of plastic, horn and metal that I could use to create my own glasses. Unfortunately, they didn’t have a sample of the plastic I’d seen online but I was so committed to it that I ordered it anyway.
At this point, the store owner had logged onto his computer and into his TD Tom Davies account. He was making my selections in the system and I could see how my glasses were to be built. I was able to select the frame shape, frame material and color, side material and color, ear piece material and color. What was crazy was when I learned everything else that could be personalized. We narrowed the bridge the smallest bit to ensure my glasses would sit higher on my nose. We could change the thickness of the frames, the curvature of the frames, how far the plastic would extend out near my temples and seriously another dozen things. It was so cool but incredibly overwhelming. Oh, also, the inside could be engraved so mine read NATZAZ.
Once ordered I was told it would take about four weeks for my glasses to come in. They were handmade in China and every week I received an email with a short video showing what part of the process my glasses were at. These videos only lasted between 20 and 50 seconds and they were basic stock videos and not of my actual glasses, but it was exciting nonetheless.
Right on time, four weeks after ordering I got a call from Oakland Fashion Optical saying that my glasses were in and ready for pick-up. I’ve got to say, I was incredibly nervous because I had high expectations for the glasses but since I never got to try the exact style on, I was anxious that I would be letdown.
I walked into the shop and was greeted with a smile. The female worker pulled out a beautiful leather box emblazoned with the TD Tom Davies logo. She removed my glasses and handed them over to be. I gently pulled off my other pair, places the new ones on the bridge of my nose and fell in love. The frames were larger than I anticipated and a bit more circular but I was looking for a brand new style and I succeeded in that endeavor. My favorite part was the coloring. The orange and teal plastic look so wonderful together and they are an unusual pairing.
I initially took the new glasses off to be placed into their box and then I caught myself and actually said aloud, “I’m so dumb. I’m definitely wearing the new ones home.” The owner came to from his office to look at my TD Tom Davies and gauge my reaction. Both workers absolutely loved them and I was grateful for their help. The lady showed me everything that came in the leather box: a cleaning cloth from TD Tom Davies and Oakland Fashion Optical, my two-year warranty, a collapsible case (so cool, it folds flat when empty but they can pop up and be rigid and protective when glasses are inside), the manufacturing former (a plastic cut out with size specifications that fits the lense to ensure the acetate frames aren’t expanding and contracting) and my technical drawing.
The look of my glasses is different than anything I have ever had but I love them. It has taken a few days to adjust to the shape on my face when I take selfies or look in the mirror, but my goal was to find something new and unique. I am happy with what I created and am thankful I had the means to make it happen. I really wanted new glasses before my trip to Australia and I am really happy with my creation. I saw Big Ben, Tower Bridge, Camden Market, the Scottish Highlands, backstage of the Magic Kingdom the Eiffel Tower through my old glasses. I cannot wait to see kangaroos and koalas, the Sydney Harbour Bridge and the streets of Melbourne through the new TD Tom Davies!
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