Wayfarers: Most Popular Vintage Style Part II

A while back, earlier this year, i think in Jan, i wrote an article (Wayfarers Most Popular Vintage Style) about Wayfares as being the vintage style enjoying the most successful renaissance at the moment, well 10 months later, the trend doesnt seem to be showing any signs of slowing down...the latest craze is to have your wayfarers colour blocked, witht he frame part being a contrasting colour to the side arms, and the new surge i've started spotting are the pastel, softer almost Grace Kelly-esque shades which caught my eyes the other day, and i'm still wondering if i should just fully emerse myself in this trend and go through all the stages and variations....i shall toy with the idea of getting the featured pair.

Spotted: Wayfarered Retro Trio

We spotted these guys at the Old Biscuit Mill in Woodstock, I was taken and inspired by their combined look; this is one of those instances where the sum of parts IS in fact greater than the parts individually. Had they been by themselves, they would have looked good and cool, but combined, they look just fantastic, without even trying. Individually they have very different styles that one wouldn’t expect there to be any cohesion in their overall look, but there was; you had to be there to see it, I guess a lot of it had to do with the fact that though different the looks were, the eras referenced were very similar, e.g. Wayfarers all round, check shirts & plimsolls for the guys. The way this trio drifted around the market sipping on cocktails before noon:-P, with their retro looks married effortlessly with their cavalier attitude it was a sight to be seen. At first Dennis & I thought they’d be unapproachable but they turned out surprisingly forthcoming & agreeable. We will post individual shots of the same photo so you’ll be able to see more of their personalities from their stances and facial expressions.

Wayfarers: Most Popular Vintage Style

One style enjoying a pronounced renaissance right now is the Ray Ban ‘Wayfarer’, which dates from 1952 when their design was a revolutionary break from the metal eyewear of the past. If you’re looking for the sunglasses Audrey Hepburn wore in Breakfast at Tiffany’s, look no further – they were Wayfarers in a tortiseshell pattern. Though they were originally marketed to pilots, they were popularized by Kim Novak and Marilyn Monroe, and went on to enjoy favour with countless celebrities through the 1960’s and 1970’s. In the 1980’s, Tom Cruise re-popularized them in the movie ‘Risky Business’.If you’re looking for ‘Buddy Holly’ glasses, those are also the Wayfarer style, but in black with clear lenses, worn as regular eyeglasses instead of sunglasses. Since late 2009 these style has been repopularized, in Cape Town alone, every reasonably conscious indivual seems to possess at least one pair of Wayfarers, they also come in a wide variety of seriously funky colours. I believe in classics so my pair is a simple black one.