What to do about $600 glasses?

November 16, 2013 12:14 PM

I got a new pair of glasses. Hated them (exaggerated my baby face). Returned them and got another pair. Hated them too (too severe, made me look like a mean old witch). Yes, I know this makes it seem like I'm the problem, but there aren't a lot of glasses available in my width to choose from, plus the styles I prefer just weren't in the stores at the time.

Of course both pairs looked OK when I tried them on in the store without lenses in them. And yes, I was wearing contacts so I could see better while I tried on the frames.

Anyway, I was not allowed to return the second pair; you get one return only. Unfortunately, due to a high prescription for nearsightedness/astigmatism, high index lenses, and a slightly expensive frame, the glasses cost me around $600 (and that was with a 50% discount on lenses...I would have been better off going to a store that had reasonably priced lenses in the first place).

So, since I can't return them, what's my best option (if any) to get a decent amount of money back? I took pictures of them. Should I just try Ebay? Has anybody tried this, or tried anything else and gotten good results? Maybe if I sell the lenses by themselves or something? Would another store pay for the frames?

I considered getting the lenses cut down to fit some other frame, but it seems unlikely that I would find a frame that I like that the lenses would be able to be cut down to, as they are on the small side already.

posted by serena15221 to Clothing, Beauty, & Fashion (16 answers total)

Sadly, the best you can hope for is to get some fraction of the price of the slightly expensive frame. Nobody is giving you a dime for the expensive lenses.
posted by jon1270 at 12:19 PM on November 16, 2013

I severely doubt you'll be able to sell the lenses, you might have some luck with the frame. Regarding the lenses: it would be extremely, extremely coincidental if you could find someone with your exact prescription, who'd need lenses in the shape you'd be selling.

I know it's a bit beside the question you asked, but I hated a lot of the new pairs of glasses when I just got them. Loads of doubts, regret... But in most cases it just took some time to adjust, and loads of people telling me (sincerely) how much they liked the new glasses. Also, perhaps a change of hairstyle might help?
posted by Ms. Next at 12:24 PM on November 16, 2013 [1 favorite]

I'd say the only thing you have half a chance of here is to try to sell the frames. Your lens prescription is a complex thing - maybe someone with a roughly similar prescription could get some benefit from them if that was their only choice (if they were too poor to buy their own lenses, for example), but I can't see someone paying much for lenses tailored as precisely for someone else's eyes as modern lenses are.

I'd also doubt that you'd get anything like what you payed for the frames. Pretty much everyone buys the frames and lenses as a package, unless they've found some vintage frames they really want, or don't want to change their old frames.

Maybe next time buy half a dozen pairs from Zenni Optical. Then, if you find a pair that you like, you can always go out and get a similar-but-fancier pair from your favourite fancy-frames place.

And on preview, seconding Ms. Next. Wear them for a bit and get the opinion of trusted friends. People are notoriously unreliable at knowing what actually suits them.
posted by pipeski at 12:26 PM on November 16, 2013

I'd keep the lenses and hope maybe they would fit in another pair of glasses (though I seriously doubt it) and try to sell the frames on craigslist or eBay.

In the future, I would spend more time glasses shopping. I take shopping for glasses very seriously. I got to a lot of stores. I'll spend a day calling stores and getting their lens prices and then I'll map out a plan to go to all the places with prices that I found reasonable. Then look for frames I like. I'll try them on, check in the mirror, bring a camera and take photos of myself or have a friend take photos of me, and then later at home I look at the photos and decide if I like how they look. If I still like them, I go back to the store and try them on again. I think long and hard about wearing them everyday and sometimes I might still come back to the store one more time after thinking it over. It's a long process, but it's certainly better than throwing money at glasses I hate. Eyeglasses are expensive and I keep mine for a very long time. It's worth taking the time to do it right.
posted by AppleTurnover at 12:30 PM on November 16, 2013

Wear the glasses. You'll only get a tiny fraction of the cost back if you sell them. And you won't have glasses to wear so you'll need to spend more money. $1200 glasses are even pricier!
posted by TheAdamist at 12:42 PM on November 16, 2013 [3 favorites]

Per the 'medical drugs and devices' policy you are not allowed to sell modern prescription eyewear on eBay anyway.

+1 just wear 'em. They looked good at one point; they can't be that awful...?
posted by kmennie at 12:48 PM on November 16, 2013 [1 favorite]

I second trying to wear them for a while and see if you start liking them. Also for the future, Warby Parker allows 5 frames to try on at home and their glasses are much MUCH cheeper than 600$ (try $100 including lenses). I have gotten my last 2 pairs of glasses from them and just love their styles and especially the price point!
posted by ruhroh at 12:57 PM on November 16, 2013 [4 favorites]

I have had lenses re-cut for new eyeglass frames. Of course, this requires that the new frames be smaller than the old frames which you point out might not be an option. You could sell the frames themselves on ebay (without lenses). It might not be a total loss.

But you could just wear them until you can afford a better pair and then keep the old pair as a spare.
posted by deanc at 12:58 PM on November 16, 2013

One return only? What a joke. Glasses are a fucking medical device.

If you purchased them with a credit card, initiate a chargeback.

When I bought a pair of glasses from Zenni Optical that didn't fit my face, they would only give me half of my money back, or send me the same pair of glasses after returning the same pair. My credit card company insured that I received both halves instead of just the one. You should be angry about this. Make some phone calls.
posted by oceanjesse at 1:00 PM on November 16, 2013 [3 favorites]

Another vote for wearing them and playing with your makeup and hair. Give it some time.

Write a fair but arch review of the place on Yelp. Include the prices and the refusal to let you return them.

For those suggesting online glasses places: Warby Parker doesn't do lenses for the very nearsighted (like me, sadly). And Zenni Optical gets really expensive with high prescriptions and astigmatism.
posted by purpleclover at 3:18 PM on November 16, 2013 [1 favorite]

I have a similar prescription and my glasses ate usually around the same price. What I did last time was get frames from Warby Parker and then took them to my local optometrist. It stinks, but when you have a prescription like that you have to be pretty sure about the lenses before they cut/finish them. Other than selling the frames and possibly having the lenses cut for different frAmes you're out of luck.

(I'm not even sure you would be able to reuse the lenses.)
posted by checkitnice at 4:11 PM on November 16, 2013

As a person who is nearly blind without corrected vision, glasses have always been a problem. I have reached a place where I realize I can wear contact lenses most of the time and cannot see myself in glasses most of the time I wear them. So, my suggestion is you save money by keeping the glasses and wearing them.
posted by wandering_not_lost at 8:51 PM on November 16, 2013

I once popped out some lenses and got them recut and fitted into another pair of frames. It worked. It's not perfect, but it can work. It won't be absolutely positively aligned right, but so long as the lenses are big enough to be recut into another pair, it should be mostly all right.
posted by mooza at 9:54 PM on November 16, 2013

I recall seeing glasses donation bins at Lenscrafters. How about donating them and taking the tax write off? That might be the best way to get some financial return.
posted by Beti at 12:04 AM on November 17, 2013

I think you should first push harder for a return. Emphasize that you are a high-paying customer with an obvious reason to come back and spend lots of money year after year if they treat you properly.

If you can't convince the shop to give you a return, at the very worst you can try to get another pair as soon as you can afford it, keep the glasses you don't like as as your backup pair, and try to convince yourself to be glad you have a spare pair in a current prescription. I'm at least as blind as you are so I know-- there is going to be a day when you're out wearing glasses and they break and you don't have contacts with you and you can't see anything and THAT SUCKS. It's good to have a pair of glasses that is always in your purse or glove compartment for that reason.
posted by BlueJae at 9:36 AM on November 17, 2013

Just to follow up, I had never heard of Warby Parker, so ruhroh's suggestion was great. I did their home try-on and didn't love any of them and stumbled upon a company with the exact same business model called Classic Specs with slightly cheaper glasses ($89 per full pair) and did a home try-on with them. Fell in love with two pairs and placed an order. This is way easier and cheaper than having to going to brick and mortar stores. I recommend.
posted by AppleTurnover at 6:58 AM on December 5, 2013 [1 favorite]