BLACK EYEWEAR FOUNDER AND DESIGNER ROBERT ROOPE EXPLAINS HOW JOINTS DESIGN CAN HAVE QUITE SPECIFIC EFFECTS ON THE ARCHITECTURE OF A FACE.
What defines a High Joint Frames?
Most modern acetate glasses have the side temples attached to the front via small joints that are riveted to the top corners of the frame. These are called ‘high joint’ frames.
High joint Frames became popular in the 1950s as frame design trends shifted from the round and oval ‘centre joint’ metal spectacles that had been worn for centuries.
And what about Centre Joint Frames?
As the name suggests, Centre joints Frames have their side temples fitted in a central position on the side of the body of the glasses.
The positioning of these centre joints came about as designers reclaimed aspects of the pre 50s with new production techniques and working with the new acetate material. The flexibility of the joint position offered a much wider choice of design possibilities.
Most of our Black Eyewear collection has high joints but there are 27 models with centre joints.
How the joint position affects the look in High Joint Frames?
The location of high joints elongates the face. It does this by creating two focal points on a level with or slightly above the temporal edges of the brow line. It’s as if the face size starts at these points: the face hangs on these two high points and consequently affects the face shape.
It can create a deep oblong look or a more desirable angular face shape.
In the cat-eye designs adjusts these focal points upward to help create the classic cat-eye look.
How the joint position affects the look in High Joint Frames?
The centre joint has the opposite effect of the high joint; lowering the joints to a central position it shortens a long face.
Centre joint frames can also be used to help correct misalignments of the eyes with small tweaks to the side arms.
The centre joint frames usually have a more friendly appearance, perhaps because of their association with wearers of pre 50s metal round specs who lived in quieter times.
