Glasses for a toddler and glasses for a teenager are two different things. Not just in size, but in what they have to put up with: that changes with every age. This is the journey as we've seen it for more than 25 years, from the first fitting to a style of their own.
Toddler glasses: light and almost unbreakable
Toddlers forget they're wearing glasses. Not on purpose; there's just too much going on. The glasses come along for running, rolling around and digging in the sandpit. So toddler glasses need to be light, sit gently (this is where silicone nose pads earn their keep) and take a knock. Our flex hinge, the OBE Flex System, bends with the frame and springs back, and if it does break, the optician replaces it at the counter. Browse the toddler glasses in the collection.
Primary school: let them choose
From around the age of six, glasses take on a second job: they don't just have to fit, your child has to want to wear them. The best thing you can do is let your child choose from the models that fit well. A child who likes their glasses puts them on without a fight. Colour is welcome: our boys' and girls' glasses come in dozens of colours, from understated to bold.
The teenage years: ANM Eyewear
Then, somewhere around the start of secondary school, children's glasses suddenly become "babyish". Fair enough: a teenager doesn't choose a pair of glasses any more, a teenager chooses a look. That's what ANM Eyewear is for, our brand for teens: bolder models, headstrong colours and names borrowed from the big city, with the same sturdiness underneath. Now they choose for themselves.
When is it time for a new pair?
- The glasses slide down or leave marks: your child has outgrown the size. See also which frame size fits my child?
- Your child looks over the top of the lenses or keeps pushing the glasses up.
- The prescription has changed; the optician checks this at every fitting.
- Your child has stopped wearing the glasses because they "look stupid". That's not stubbornness, that's a signal.
At every stage the advice is the same: leave the measuring and fitting to a professional. Find an optician near you.