Sunglasses for the Style Essences
To explore sunglasses for the style essences, we have to time-travel: back to the 1930s when Classic aviators were invented, to the 60s for round Ingenue glasses, the 80s for electric Gamine ones, and so on, until we reach modern (and futuristic) shades.
The concept of time also relates to how style essences symbolize different life stages: Ingenue and Gamine feel more youthful, while every other essence feels mature in its own unique way.
Learn the best sunglasses for your style essences, plus some of the best decades (and life stages) for essence inspiration.
Classic Sunglasses: Timeless and Iconic
Popularized in: 1930s and 50s
If you teleported several decades into the past, or even to nearly 100 years ago, you wouldn’t look out of place in Classic glasses.
These sophisticated-yet-understated shades are always in style:
Classic sunglasses qualities:
Simple, recognizable, and iconic (such as Aviators)
Neutral colors
Thin to moderately thick frames
Not oversized or undersized
Wayfarers are another Classic style:
Glasses with moderate shapes and sizes highlight the beautiful balance of Classic faces.
Classic styles like Aviators and Wayfarers feel sophisticated and figuratively mature.
They’re great for the beach but also pair well with business attire: button-downs, blazers, and even suits.
Ingenue Sunglasses: Round and Retro
Popularized in: 1960s
Ingenue sunglasses create a look of wide-eyed innocence and curiosity—like everything is fascinating, and you’re trying to take it all in:
Ingenue glasses qualities:
Various sizes—small, medium, somewhat large
Round sunglasses
Retro feel (easiest way to achieve a retro feel: choose glasses with the iconic round shape popularized in the 60s)
Very thin or wire frames express Ingenue gentleness.
But thicker frames can work, too, if the effect still feels delicate:
Many retro fashion styles flatter Ingenue, from 40s tea dresses to 50s poodle skirts to, of course, 60s round glasses. (The Ingenue-retro connection may be a future post!)
Gamine Sunglasses: Loud and Playful
Popularized in: 1960s, 1980s
Like Ingenue, Gamine sunglasses feel retro and youthful. But instead of appearing delicate, Gamine glasses are punchy and loud:
Gamine glasses qualities:
Geometric (especially rectangular)
Moderate, or somewhat small and narrow, shapes
Bright, cheerful, or high-energy colors
Gamines and Dramatics are flattered by thick (just like their best mascara!) frames. This creates a bold, graphic feel.
Gamines can also rock curving lenses, especially cat eyes.
What’s most important isn’t the literal shapes but the vibe—and these red shades exude playfulness. Their boldness makes them feel figuratively edgy, almost triangular.
Gamine glasses match the electric energy of the 80s. They’re the perfect accessory for people who want to have fun and not always take themselves seriously.
Romantic Sunglasses: Moody and Glam
Popularized by: movie stars of the 50s, 60s, and beyond
In contrast to Gamine sunglasses, Romantic sunglasses do create a vibe of taking yourself pretty seriously.
You might wear Romantic sunglasses if you’re a glamorous movie star and/or trying to go incognito:
Romantic glasses qualities:
Moderate to large
Curving edges
Glam, moody vibe
Often moderate-thick frames
Often neutral colors
Cat eye styles are also flattering:
As seen here, pointed edges work for Romantic when the rest of the shapes are curvy, and when the overall vibe is serious and alluring.
As we saw above, more playful cat eye glasses will feel Gamine.
Romantic sunglasses can of course be worn by people of any age. But they express sophistication, maturity, and sensuality.
Natural Sunglasses: Practical and Down-to-Earth
Popular in: modern times!
Natural glasses embody modernity’s core aesthetic: laidback and effortlessly cool.
They can also be tricky to define.
You want Natural glasses to feel rather simple and “basic,” but without appearing typical enough to have Classic:
Natural sunglasses qualities:
Straight (or mostly straight) frames
Blunt edges
Moderate to large
Colors that feel blended rather than bold (ideally earth-tones)
Simple and understated (while avoiding the most iconic Classic styles, like basic Aviators and Wayfarers)
Wide shapes
You’ll also want Natural glasses to have primarily straight-ish shapes, but not so sharp that they feel Gamine or Dramatic.
Instead of straight geometric shapes, Natural sunglasses often have straight-ish shapes.
These glasses have enough regularity and blunted edges to make them appear carefree and Natural, rather than bold.
The calm and earthy colors help with that, too.
With their simplicity, Natural glasses appear figuratively mature, as if you wore them just as much for function as for fashion.
Whereas Gamine glasses are clearly trying to make a statement, and Romantic glasses are clearly trying to project moody glamour, Natural glasses aren’t as interested in being attention-grabbing.
And that gives them an appealingly confident, effortless feel.
Dramatic Sunglasses: Edgy and Modern
Popularized in: 2010s and beyond
Dramatic fashion is daring, innovative, and cutting-edge:
Dramatic sunglasses qualities:
Oversized
Geometric
Thick frames
Unique and extreme shapes, such as flat tops
Dramatic sunglasses look at home on a runway: their angular shapes mirror the sharp-edged bone structure of many high fashion models.
Dramatic glasses also pair well with edgy modern fashion, like leather or snakeskin jackets.
Neutrals are a suitable Dramatic color choice. But glasses in unique colors can be especially attention-grabbing:
Highly Dramatic color-blocked glasses. The glittery frames add glam Romantic.
Make sure the color feels formal and sophisticated, since playful uses of bold color will be Gamine.
Ethereal Sunglasses: Delicate and Futuristic
Popularized in: the future?
Like Dramatic, Ethereal sunglasses will be unique, but with a much gentler feel:
Ethereal sunglasses qualities:
Moderate to large
Roughly oval-shaped lenses
Especially “butterfly” lenses with flared outer corners
Very thin frames
Light colors
Gradient tinted lenses
Ethereal’s dreamy vibe evokes the sky and heavens. So anything that suggests flight tends to flatter Ethereal, including butterfly lenses.
Fittingly, Ethereal glasses can have a light-as-air feel:
Very thin frames, plus gradient or ombre lenses, feel lightweight.
The tiny indentations all over the frames also creates a minutely-detailed, iconically Ethereal effect.
Ethereal and Ingenue can have a similar vibe: gentle and delicate.
One way to distinguish them in fashion is to consider their figurative “maturity” levels.
Compared to Ingenue, Ethereal styles will appear more adult and formal. The above glasses are delicate, but they fit perfectly with a sophisticated perfume display—mature and Ethereal, rather than youthful and Ingenue.
What about eyeglasses?
Guidelines for indoor eyeglasses have a lot of overlap with sunglasses, but there’s additional factors to consider.
Eyeglasses for the style essences will be a separate post!
Can your best sunglasses reveal your style essences?
Sunglasses are one of the few fashion items that go directly on top of your face.
Since they’re so up-close-and-personal with your facial features, your most flattering sunglasses might provide excellent clues to your style type.
A counterargument is that since sunglasses obscure part of your face (and a pretty important part!), they may not be super helpful for determining your essences.
Still, if you’re working out your style type, it could potentially help to consider your best glasses.
Do you really need to match your sunglasses to your essences?
We could argue that it’s pretty unnecessary to match your sunglasses to your style essences.
After all, they’re blocking a good portion of your face!
A counterargument: sunglasses literally sit right in the middle of your face, so it can be especially flattering to match them to your features, since they’re so close to them.
Both perspectives seem valid. When it comes to creating visual harmony, it also probably tends to be more important to match your eyeglasses to your essences (future post!), since eyeglasses obviously tend to have transparent lenses.
Side Note (Time-related Kind of)
It’s sunglasses season, so I wanted to do a post on them.
But lately I’ve been trying to balance wearing sunglasses with going without them, especially in the morning—apparently this is critical for setting your circadian clock! : )
