Products
The Eyes Have It!
And all eyes are on James Bryan Opticians with our mouth-watering array of Frames, Sunglasses and Prescription Sunglasses.
Frames
Our huge selection of frames includes exclusive brands such as Philippe Starck, Alain
Mikli, Eye'DC, Tag Heuer, Lindberg, Bellinger, Oliver Peoples, Paul Smith and Chanel.
Of course, we don’t neglect the mainstream designers like D&G, Polo Ralph Lauren and Versace.
Are diamonds really a girl’s best friend? Checkout the jewellery ranges from Tiffany & Co., Cartier and Bvlgari as well as the luxury Tag Heuer L-Type.
If you are a Sporty Spice, we offer eyewear from Tag Heuer and Oakley
Sunglasses
From Fashionably Sporty to Sports Afficianado, all the major brands are here at JBO: Maui Jim, Oakley, Rayban, Vuarnet, Arnette, Prada, Prada Sport, Bvlgari, Cartier, Oliver Peoples, Paul Smith, Chanel, Tiffany & Co. and Tag Heuer.
And all our sunglasses are professionally fitted, with full after-sales service, from adjustments to repairs and spares.
Prescription sunglasses
Taking spectacles and giving them a dark tint does not a pair of prescription sunglasses make! Light (and thus harmful UV) can get around the sides and over the top, especially in modern narrow designs.
Sunglasses are made to protect your eyes from the sun and prescription sunglasses take a lot of thought and care to do everything you need them to do. That is the kind of expert care we take at JBO and why we can fit prescriptions into nearly all models from all brands.
Contact lenses
There is a bewildering array of contact lenses available, and we're here to make sure that you get the ones that are right for the vision you need to keep your eyes healthy. You’ll be spoilt for choice, too, as all the major brands are represented: Johnson & Johnson Acuvue, Ciba Focus lenses, and Coopervision products.
However, if your eyes require something a little less ‘off the peg’ and more haute couture, as an independent we can turn to any contact lens manufacturer and have lenses specially made for your needs.
Ray-Ban
By far the largest-selling brand in the world, RayBans were originally made by an American company called Bausch and Lomb (who still make contact lenses, amongst other things) and sold a few years back to the Italian frame giant, Luxottica.
Ray Ban is the company that brought you the now classic "Wayfarer", the Large Metal "Aviator" and the "Cats" sunglasses. You can still purchase the original G15 glass lenses, but RayBan also offers some new technologies such as multi-layer polarising and anti-reflective treatments.
As well as the largest-selling brand, Ray Bans are also the most copied and there are a lot of fakes out there; so make sure that you buy them from James Bryan Opticians who guarantee that your RayBans are 100% the ‘real deal’.
Oakley
Think of sports sunglasses and Oakley is the name that immediately springs to mind. For many years, the highest-profile athletes would sport nothing but their Oakleys and their talent.
Pick your sport. From cricket or golf, to running, skiing, cycling or tennis there are activity specific frame and lens combinations available from James Bryan Opticians’ Oakley range.
You might not know that Oakley also produces a range of lifestyle sunglasses for men and women. These models have the familiar Oakley look, feel and quality but are a little less extreme and more suitable for everyday use.
*Winter 2009/2010 snow goggles are now in stock*
Maui Jim
Maui Jim used to be "The Best Sunglasses that you've Never Heard of,"
but that's all changed now. Maui Jim sunglasses have grown in popularity every year since we first brought them to Chelmsford in 1998.
Built around their no-compromise 9-layer polarised lenses, Maui Jim offer the same quality of glare protection in their £100 entry-level models as they do in their £350 flagship titanium models, which makes them unique as the only range of sunglasses available where polarising is not an option but is included as standard.
Available in 4 lens colours and over 40 different models, Maui Jim's range of sunglasses has grown with the popularity of the brand and has become the choice for the cogniscienti.
Vuarnet
Vuarnet have been making sunglasses for extreme conditions for 50 years. Named after and made for Jean Vuarnet, the 1960 Winter Olympics downhill skiing gold medallist, Vuarnet sunglasses are a technical product for serious use.
Most of the frames are made from phenomenally tough French nylon, and the lenses are toughened glass with up to category 4 (the darkest you can get) lenses. If you ski, sail or climb, you need Vuarnet sunglasses. A committed climbing nut, James has just returned from an expedition to the Himalayas and Vuarnet was his choice of eye protection at over 20,000 feet. "I knew that, whatever this mountain threw at me, my eyes at least would be well looked after and my Vuarnet sunglasses worked perfectly," he said on his return.
We all know the dangers associated with UV exposure and that's why we apply suntan lotion. Your eyes are no different and require exactly the same protection from the sun. Well, not exactly…. you can't really put sun cream in your eyes. That’s why you need a decent pair of sunglasses.
We in the UK are fortunate that there are regulations in place to ensure that sunglasses have a guaranteed level of UV protection….whether we spend £500 on a pair of Oakley "Pit Boss" sunglasses or something considerably less expensive. There are a few problems, however, with the lenses in cheap sunglasses.
For starters, they are unlikely to have any sort of optical quality. Most are simply stamped out of a piece of dark acrylic with no accurate optical properties. This creates distortions, headaches and eye fatigue.
Secondly, the material may have to be treated to absorb the harmful UV rays. This is fine while the treatment remains intact, but UV exposure over a period of time will eventually destroy this protection (think of how sunlight fades curtains); although they may still look nice and dark, their UV- blocking properties will be non-existent.
The JBO Difference
Any sunglasses you purchase from JBO will feature an optically correct lens regardless of its curvature and all of our sunglasses have UV properties inherent in the material that the lens is made out of and so the amount of UV that is blocked will be as good 5 years down the line as it was the day you bought them.
Maui Jim Prescription Sunglasses
Maui Jim Prescription Sunglasses are available for most models including their best selling 400 series Maui Sport. Prescription Single vision and varifocals are available in polycarbonate, Maui Evolution and Superthin glass lens materials in both standard and distortion-busting Passport lens designs. All are made to the same exacting standard as Maui Jim non-prescription sunglasses, with 9 layer polarising technology and anti-glare, colour enhancing treatments.
Oakley Prescription Sunglasses
Oakley Prescription Sunglasses are also available for most models, even the sports specific Radar and Flak Jacket, and all with the strength and impact-resistance of polycarbonate. Polarising lenses, varifocals, Iridium treatments and even photochromic options have been incorporated into their prescription sunglasses programme, making the range one of the most comprehensive available.