What a polarized lens adds to a cat eye
A plain tinted lens dims everything evenly. A polarized lens has a filter in it that blocks light bouncing off flat surfaces, which is the glare off a wet road, a car bonnet, a lake, the sea, a glass building and a white table in the sun. Through a polarized lens those surfaces go matte and the colours underneath come back; through a plain lens they stay as a bright sheet. The what are polarized sunglasses guide explains the filter, and the polarized versus non polarized guide covers when the difference matters and when it does not.
For a cat eye in particular, polarized changes who the shape is for. A non-polarized cat eye is a fashion pair, worn for an hour at a time. A polarized cat eye is the pair for the drive, the beach day and the long lunch outside, which the driving sunglasses guide covers from the road side. The lift at the corner stays; the squint goes.
The three cat eye families
- The oversized cat eye. A big lens with a lifted corner, in acetate, the shape that covers the brow and the cheek. The most glamorous and the most current; it suits a round, oval or heart face and a confident wearer.
- The soft cat eye. An oval or round lens with a gentle lift, sometimes with a defined brow line. The everyday cat eye, and the one for anyone who finds the full shape too much; it suits nearly every face.
- The narrow cat eye. A shallow, pointed cat eye in the nineties and sixties manner, sharp at the corner. The most retro and the most striking, and the one for a narrow or long face and a strong sense of style; the 60s sunglasses guide covers where it came from.
Metal cat eyes sit across all three, thinner and dressier than acetate, which the metal frame sunglasses guide and acetate sunglasses guide cover from the material side.
Which cat eye suits which face
- Round faces. The best match for the shape. The lifted corner and a straight or flat top line give a round face the angle it lacks; the oversized cat eye with a straight top is the one, and the sunglasses for a round face guide puts it first.
- Square faces. The soft cat eye, with a rounded lens and a gentle lift, which softens the jaw without adding a corner to it; the sunglasses for a square face guide explains why the sharp version fights a square jaw.
- Heart faces. The cat eye was almost designed for this face: the lift echoes a wide brow and the lens balances a narrow chin; the sunglasses for a heart shaped face guide covers the weighting.
- Oval faces. Take all three families; the only decision is size.
- Long faces. The oversized cat eye adds width; the narrow cat eye adds length, so it needs the face to be narrow rather than long.
The one thing polarized does not do
A polarized lens cuts glare; it does not decide how much of the sun's light the lens blocks, and the two are separate things. The protection comes from the lens material and its treatment, which is the same on a polarized and a non-polarized MUJOSH lens, and the glare cut is an extra on top. So a polarized cat eye is not "safer" than the same cat eye without the filter; it is more comfortable in glare, and it shows you the road and the water more clearly. The how to tell if sunglasses are polarized guide has the screen test for checking a pair you already own.
Fit: a cat eye that slides loses its lift
The whole point of a cat eye is the corner sitting at or above the eye line, and a frame that slides down the nose drops the corner and turns the lift into a droop. The checks are the same as for any sunglass: the frame reaches the sides of the face, the eyes sit near the centre of each lens, the lower edge clears the cheeks when you smile, and the frame stays put when you look down. On a nose that does not rise much between the eyes, a cat eye cut for a lower nose bridge, or a metal one with adjustable pads, keeps the corner where it was drawn; many of our frames are cut that way, and the low bridge fit sunglasses collection lists them. The how should sunglasses fit guide has the full set of checks.
MUJOSH polarized cat eye sunglasses
Seven cat eyes in the polarized sunglasses collection, with polarization stated only where the product page says so, by family. Prices as listed on 27 October.
Oversized. Jasmin, $79: an oversized cat eye in Italian acetate, polarized, low bridge fit, in black or red; the pair to start with. Jasmin Straight, $89: the same cat eye with a straight top line, polarized, low bridge fit, in red or black; the one for a round face.
Soft. Ban Habit, $79: an oval cat eye with a defined brow line, polarized on both colourways, low bridge fit, in amber brown; the everyday cat eye for warm colouring. Groovy, $99: a modern cat eye in acetate with polarized lenses and metal corner accents, two colourways. Lady Lang, $119: a screwless metal cat eye with polarized lenses, adjustable nose pads and a low bridge fit, in gold or silver metal; the dressed one.
Narrow and compact. Vintage Narrow, $89, in BB: a narrow acetate cat eye, polarized, low bridge fit, in black; the sixties shape with the glare cut. Techon, $89: a compact cat eye in ultra-light TR90, polarized, in dark red brown, tortoise with a yellow-green lens, or black; the lightest cat eye here and the one for a small face.
The women's sunglasses collection carries all seven, and the red sunglasses guide covers the red and burgundy colourways among them.
The bottom line
Polarized cat eye sunglasses turn a fashion shape into an all-day pair: the lifted corner stays, and the filter takes the glare off roads, water and glass. The oversized cat eye suits round, oval and heart faces, the soft cat eye suits nearly everyone including square faces, and the narrow cat eye suits a narrow face and a strong style. Polarized cuts glare and does not change the lens's protection, which is the same across the range. Fit decides whether the corner lifts or droops, so choose a lower bridge cut or pads. In the MUJOSH range Jasmin is the pair to start with, Jasmin Straight the round-face version, Ban Habit, Groovy and Lady Lang the soft cat eyes, Vintage Narrow the sixties shape and Techon the compact one.
The biggest of these cat eyes are butterflies; the butterfly sunglasses guide covers the shape.
The black pairs among these, polarized and not, are in the black cat eye sunglasses guide.
Frequently asked questions
Are cat eye sunglasses usually polarized?
Not usually; most cat eyes are sold as fashion pairs with a plain tint. A polarized cat eye has the glare filter built into the lens, which makes it the version for driving, the beach and long days outside. Check the product page: polarization is a lens choice, not part of the shape.
Which face shape suits a polarized cat eye?
Round faces take the oversized cat eye with a straight top; square faces take the soft cat eye with a rounded lens; heart faces take almost any cat eye; oval faces take all three families; long faces take the oversized version for width.
Do polarized cat eye sunglasses protect your eyes more?
The filter cuts glare; it does not change how much light the lens blocks, which comes from the lens material and its treatment and is the same on a polarized and a non-polarized MUJOSH lens. Polarized is about comfort and clarity in glare, not extra protection.
Which MUJOSH cat eye sunglasses are polarized?
Jasmin ($79), Jasmin Straight ($89), Ban Habit ($79), Groovy ($99), Lady Lang ($119), Vintage Narrow in BB ($89) and Techon ($89), per their product pages.
