196 LIFE THRU A LENS...

So the Facebook algorithm has been doing its job, as it started showing sunglasses ads after I clicked on one link. Now I'm being bombarded with adverts for eyewear endorsed by everyone from Oasis' Noel Gallagher to F1 driver Oscar Piastri.  

The Gallagher offerings are designed by FINLAY, an independent British eyewear brand founded in 2012. They handcraft their own frames and grind their own lenses, and have stores in Notting Hill and Soho, so you get the picture of the quality of the glasses.  

A pair of their Chitern glasses, designed by Gallagher, will set you back a cool £175. Purchasing a pair is good for your soul, though, as 25% of the sales price, which encompasses 100% of Noel's royalties, is donated to support the incredible work of Teenage Cancer Trust.

The Piastri glasses are produced by SunGod, a McLaren Formula 1 Team sponsor. They are a more traditional design, available in various colours with multiple lens options. They also have a 'Build Your Own' section where you can create custom creations. 

They also have some limited-edition, tie-in glasses, precofigured and sporting unique brand glasses. I thought the Piastri eyewear might be of interest to Carl, as they are black with gold lenses, which fit the Team Just Please Squint colour scheme perfectly.

They are £90, so not exactly cheap, but they are a lot more wallet-friendly than the Gallagher-branded gigs.

While browsing the SunGod site, I found myself going down a rabbit hole, designing my own glasses to try to match our team colours. There are lots of options on their site, so it was straightforward to pair a white frame with blue lenses (which is the same as the official Martini Racing glasses I have found online), but could we do better?

A quick look around turned up frosted, clear frames with slightly lighter, silver-blue lenses that looked fantastic. The extra cost for this customisation? Nothing. The bespoke sunglasses cost the same as the standard offerings; there is no premium for creating your own design.  

For £56, I get a pair of boss glasses. If I want a polarised or fancy 8KO even-more-polarised lens, the price bumps up to £81 and £108, respectively. Do I need the extra clarity and protection? Maybe. Do I need professional athlete levels of clarity and protection? Probably not.

I was keen to get Lisa a pair too to complement the Team Dirty Martin uniform we will be wearing each day of the rally, but she "isn't a sunglasses wearer" and didn't share my excitement at being able to create something to exactly suit us, even down to customising the colour of the company logo on the arm.  

Well, she is getting a pair anyway, I've decided it is part of the uniform for the rally. I just need her to pick some frames, and I'll do the rest. I'll add this to the ever-growing list of unnecessary necessities.