Wires Glasses is a genderless eyewear brand handcrafted in Italy using stainless steel wire for the frames, with a patented invisible hinge technology and 3D printing for the lens rims, producing a minuscule amount of waste in comparison to conventional eyewear manufacturing Wires have designed a modular system that allows the rims to be easily removed and changed. This means you only need one Wire – that fits with multiple types of lens rims.
Wires uses stainless steel wire for the frames and 3D printing for the lens rims, producing a minuscule amount of waste in comparison to conventional eyewear manufacturing. They champion quality, craftsman/craftswoman-ship, and consider their frames akin to jewelry – to be loved and looked after.
While the majority of high-end eyewear uses traditional “detractive manufacturing” techniques where materials such as acetate is cut away from a material block to leave behind what’s needed for the frame, Wires 3D prints the rims instead. 3D printing is “additive manufacturing”. This describes a process that only consumes the precise material it needs to form the product. Gradually, layer by layer, our rims are built up from a powder. The powder that’s not used is then gathered up and re-used in the next print run, meaning that there is zero waste in the production.
Wires sourced a bio-nylon derivative from the castor bean for both the 3D printed rims and all of the sunglasses lenses. Meanwhile, their temple tips contain 43% natural rubber. By using bio-nylons, they strive to reduce the demand for petroleum-based plastics – which currently account for 4% of all oil used globally.
Additionally, their sunglass lenses are made in France with a revolutionary bio polyamide ecological resign made from the castor oil plant. It is manufactured with biomass energy, reducing carbon dioxide emissions as well.
Check out Wires Glasses website or their Kickstarter campaign.
