We’ve decided to return to a material that you may be surprised to hear is very rarely used in sunglasses these days — glass. Plastic lenses crept in and took over from glass when it became easier and cheaper to manufacture. But as you might know, recycling plastic is both difficult and expensive and our over-reliance on it is taking a huge toll on our planet.
Therefore, we’ve chosen to just be done with plastic by welcoming glass back into our glasses.
By using Italian-made glass lenses we’re going back to a traditional method — one that has been perfected over many hundreds of years — and we’re doing so in order to help protect our future.
Glass is easier to recycle than plastic, which is why we believe we're doing the right thing in using it — over 70% of its chemical makeup is sand, which combines with a mixture of mineral compounds to become glass when heated to over 1000 degrees celsius. Scrap glass, or cullet, is one of the main ingredients in making new glass, and glass will bio-degrade naturally if put into landfill.
Glass lenses happen to be harder than their plastic counterparts so they don’t scratch as easily. They also offer better clarity, optical quality and a high refractive index.
Technological advancements in hardening mean the risk of smashing glass lenses is much smaller than you may imagine. But if you’re still concerned, worry not because we are able to replace any lenses that fall victim to a poolside incident* that results in a crack or shatter. If this should unfortunately happen, please email us at repairs@monclondon.com for more information, costs may apply.
*Shattered and cracked lenses will be replaced regardless of the type of incident — we only specified “poolside” because it was an evocative and relatable image for you to ponder.
We believe in designing beautiful eyewear, manufactured with the best interests of our customers and our planet in mind — using glass lenses is just one step we've taken to achieve that goal.
As you all know, wearing sunglasses protects your eyes from the sun - that's why you buy them. If unprotected eyes are exposed to the sun, a long and intensive irradiation can lead to inflammations of the conjunctiva and cornea. In the worst case, the eye may be damaged in the long term and the lens may become cloudy (cataract). Therefore, you must always wear sunglasses with guaranteed UV protection.
For our glass lenses, we use UV400 Category 3 optical glass, protecting against 99-100% UVA and UVB sun rays.
UVB and UVA rays penetrate unhindered to the earth's surface. The designation UV400 with guaranteed UV protection protects against harmful UVB and UVA radiation. Our sunglasses reduce visible light, which makes seeing in the sunshine more pleasant.
Our lenses supplier champions excellence in the optical glass lens sector. They have zero waste status for their manufacturing facilities, and are among the first companies to achieve UNI EN ISO 14001 Environmental Certification.