Looking to see if anyone has a favorite template, pattern, lesson
plan, or step by step on making glasses, specifically frames out of
metals. I have found a couple but know there must be more out there!
Thanks in advance- GAIL
Gail- My sweetie Tim made his own glasses out of 18kt yellow gold,
and mokume. Alloyed the metal, poured the ingot, made the wire,
hinges. screws etc. He wears them every day. If you go to our site at
http://www.ganoksin.com/gnkurl/190
you can see him wearing them on the main page. No pattern. He just
made them to fit some lens that he already had. Just like making a
bezel for a stone with screws.
He also made a two of my teeth as well as one of his own.
I want to get him biz cards that say Gizmologist.
Have fun and make lots of jewelry.
Jo Haemer
www.timothywgreen.com
Gail,
It really depends on how “professional” you want to go with your
eyewear. I have hand-made my own 14K eyeglass frames for about 8
years now, being mentored originally by an optician friend here in
San Diego. Mine are totally fabricated out of hand-alloyed 14K yellow
gold wire and sheet stock.
Only the monel hinges aren’t handmade. The pair I wear now I’ve worn
for almost 5 years, and they are comfortable, durable, and I’ve worn
them everywhere, from camping to motorcycling. Oh, and they are the
only pair like them in the world.
Mine are half-frames, using a mono-filament fishing line set in a
groove around the outside edge of the lens to secure the lenses to
the gold frames. The lens shape of mine are derived from an Alain
Mikli design. A round lens would be easier to build a frame around,
but as the shape of the lens gets more complicated, so does the
construction of the frames. The curvature of the lens, precision
soldering of components together, symmetry, as well as placement and
function of hinges is not easy at all to accomplish. The fit of the
lenses, nose pads, and even how the eyewear folds up and fit into an
eyeglass case are all important considerations. They have to be very
strong, but lightweight on the face.
I am working on an adjustable soldering jig to make assembling and
soldering the pieces together much easier and more precise.
Oh, and if you’re going to make your own eyewear, go for great
lenses. I love my Zeiss progressives with the “Transition” coatings
that darken automatically in the sun. Not cheap, but my god, are they
great lenses!
Jay Whaley
Hi Gail,
Looking to see if anyone has a favorite template, pattern, lesson plan, or step by step on making glasses, specifically frames out of metals.
I’m interested in this as well, my wife has been complaining that
she can’t get any glasses that suit her, so making her some would be
a good way to go.
I’d like to pick your brain, as whenever I search under this topic,
I don’t get anything remotely related to eye wear.
Regards Charles A.
I'm interested in this as well, my wife has been complaining that she can't get any glasses that suit her, so making her some would be a good way to go.
Add me to the list also. Sounds like it could be a fun project…
Teddy
Hi Gail - and other interested Orchidians!!
You might try looking at New Zealand jeweller Brian Adam, who
specialises in making eyewear of all kinds! His website has some
great and, if I recall correctly, he is a very
approachable man! Website address: (of course)
Good luck!
Jane Walker
Add me to the list also. Sounds like it could be a fun project.... Teddy
I’ve been making frames since 1981, from simple bezeling-the-lens
ideas to complex stitched monofilament jobs, and have developed ways
to design and make eyeglasses to fit the customer. Especially nice to
be able to do from a distance, but certainly easiest when the
customer is in front of you.
I used to make teaching tours of various countries - the toughest
was a 7-venue trip in USA over 7 weeks in 1999 - but I’ve slowed down
lately.
I work from home now, and I’ve developed a way to do online sessions
for you who are interested. And I am not surprised some of you are
showing interest as it’s such a natural step from the fabulous and
often complicated jewellery pieces you might already make, to
designing and making specs!
In 1981 I made my first frame, taught myself as there was no place
to go nor people to ask, and we in New Zealand had import
restrictions so optical parts were not easily available. So I made
the screws and hinges. I LIKED making hinges (especially ones that
look like the front kingpin of a Morris Minor)!
Nowadays I prefer the readily-available Italian or German brand
hinges and screws, etc. And as Jay does, a great way to start is to
use existing Rx lenses and re-make the frame. Get out your
hand-alloyed gold or sterling and away you go.
I offer a series of sessions on designing and making eyeglasses for
a customer. Contact me about it.
The other way is to come to New Zealand for a “craft vacation” and
spend some of the time on eyeglass tuition.
Cheers
Brian
Auckland
New Zealand
www.adam.co.nz
Mine are half-frames, using a mono-filament fishing line set in a groove around the outside edge of the lens to secure the lenses to the gold frames.
Pictures!!!
[Edit]
How can I share files and pictures with the list?
http://www.ganoksin.com/gnkurl/ftp
Or… send the files to the attention of service@ganoksin.com and we
will upload them for you…
[/Edit]
I saved this link a while ago for Brian Adam, a New Zealand jeweler
making custom eyewear. Pretty cool things. I think he was posting on
Orchid a while back.
Mine are half-frames, using a mono-filament fishing line set in a
groove around the outside edge of the lens to secure the lenses to
the gold frames.
Pictures!!!
I sense interest… great.
This is how I held the lens in a recent 9k frame, where the lens
shape is only partly metal. I drill 0.5mm holes like stitching in the
metal: http://www.ganoksin.com/ftp/01.jpg
Thread some same-size nylon fishing line:
The lenses have a 0.5mm groove cut in the edge. The nylon goes into
the groove. Stitching locates the lens to the metal frame, and the
nylon under the lens stretches across tightly and is finished with
two tiny holes near the nosepads:
More sequences and info here:
http://www.ganoksin.com/gnkurl/19k
Cheers
Bri
Auckland
New Zealand
www.adam.co.nz
Hi Brian,
I’m having a go at (trying to ) making glassframes. I took a workshop
with Deb Stoner a few years ago. Could you please tell me where to
get the German/Italian hinges?
Linda Savineau, Belgium
The lenses have a 0.5mm groove cut in the edge. The nylon goes into the groove. Stitching locates the lens to the metal frame, and the nylon under the lens stretches across tightly and is finished with two tiny holes near the nosepads: ganoksin.com/ftp/15.jpg
Sorry, it’s not 15 but 20:
Brian
Auckland
New Zealand
www.adam.co.nz
Hi Linda,
I'm having a go at (trying to ) making glassframes. I took a workshop with Deb Stoner a few years ago. Could you please tell me where to get the German/Italian hinges?
Deb does wonderful eyewear workshops, was she not able to help you
with this? Perhaps she would encourage you to devise your own! I know
I had to in the beginning.
Here in New Zealand I’m such a long way from anywhere I have had to
try all sorts of places for supplies. I source my hinges over the
years from looking around global optical trade suppliers, and one
place in the USA called Hilco provided me with useful parts like
various Italian hinges (Centrostyle brand) and so on. When I taught
classes in the US and Canada I made up student kits and once, while
about to teach a class in New York, the parts still had not arrived,
so I worked the phone book (a pre-google type of resource) and
rustled up some hinges and padarms etc.
The point I make is that optical parts are almost everywhere and the
suppliers in your area should be your first choice.
That said, I found one of my local suppliers sent me mis-matched
hinge parts, the two would not fit well together, though they swore
they’d ‘bed in’ after a while. I had to use two pliers to move them!
So check them thoroughly when they arrive.
After a quick google I found this page of hinges:
http://www.ganoksin.com/gnkurl/19q
a catalogue page showing ‘soldering’ hinges of various dimensions.
Previous pages show hinges for heat-embedding into acetate frames,
and hinges for riveting. Soldering hinges are what I use, but I’ve
included rivet hinges in student kits as they can be applied to many
different materials.
That’s the Italian brand I use. For the German brand of parts it’s
more convoluted. I approached the German company and the rep was
generous enough to ship me some samples. These have lasted me years!
I treasure them and don’t put them in student kits.
Do you want gold parts? A student on my Metalwerx class managed to
find solid gold optical hinges. They were very costly so I didn’t
follow up on them.
Good luck making your frame! Show us your progress.
Cheers
Brian
Auckland
New Zealand
www.adam.co.nz