About a month ago I went back to Opticianry, which was my profession pre-babies. After 10ish years working as an Optician, I found I was pregnant and more than just a little burnt out, and honestly didn’t think I’d ever go back to it. Well. Put me in a room with beautiful handcrafted frames, and it’s obvious how much I love and am excited about eyewear. Stick me in a lab where I get to craft a pair from start to finish with my own two  hands, and I am beyond happy. For me, Opticianry always satisfied my need to make something, but also felt like the perfect marriage between form and function. But when I left the world of optics 10 or so years ago, amazing handcrafted frames were not easy to come by, and custom-made eyewear were a luxury only afforded the very wealthy. Then I discovered Urban Spectacles!

I first came across Scott Urban at the Renegade Craft Fair in Brooklyn in 2005. He had a really spare set-up, with some handcrafted wood eyeglass frames set out, and it was the first time he sold his creations to anyone. Where it all started. Urban Spectacles is Scott’s Chicago-based company, where he handcrafts custom eyewear for his clients. First of all, I’m a sucker for anything with a natural woodgrain finish. So clean, so earthy-yet-modern…I dunno. I’ve always been attracted to it…is that weird? Secondly, you’ve already read about how I’m a sucker for eyewear in general. Putting the two together? WOW. The eyewear on his website is unbelievably beautiful, and the attention to detail and incredible craftsmanship is obvious. It almost makes me want to try my hand at designing and making my own frames! But for now I will leave that to the expert and order a custom pair from Urban Spectacles…CAN’T WAIT.