Giant Vintage Sunglasses Review
This online store sells unworn vintage sunglasses—is it worth it?
Credit:
Reviewed / Ashy Palliparambil
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There are people who love vintage fashion, and then there are folks who love vintage fashion. For them, there’s nothing more exciting than thumbing through racks upon racks of retro styles just to find a unique printed dress, bell-bottom pants, or colorful accessory to make a one-of-a-kind statement. Dear reader, I am not one of those people. I just don’t have the patience for the “hunt” that vintage style often requires, and instead, I turn to retailers like Modcloth that specialize in reproducing vintage styles for a modern audience.
What if there was a way to find authentic vintage styles with the ease and convenience of traditional online shopping? That’s where Giant Vintage comes in. This online-only sunglasses retailer offers hundreds of authentic, never-been-worn vintage sunglasses that stretch back to the 1960s and 1970s. The brand invited me to test out some of their most popular styles and sent me the Flip-Pop Black 80s/90s Flip-Up Sunglasses ($26), the Absolutely Aviator 70s Sunglasses ($30), and the Control Aviator Sunglasses ($32). See what I thought about this unique approach to vintage fashion.
What is Giant Vintage?
With Giant Vintage, you can try on authentic, unworn vintage sunglasses from the 60s through the 00s.
Founded in 2020 by Annabelle Gonzalez, Giant Vintage offers authentic vintage sunglasses dating to the 1960s and 1970s, all the way through to the early 2000s. They also offer some vintage-inspired reproductions, but the website makes it very clear whether you’re shopping for “true vintage” or “vintage-inspired” shades. Their true vintage selections are deadstock pairs that have never been worn before and sat in storage for decades.
The Giant Vintage website makes it easy to shop by shape or decade, and even offers a selection of options with optical lenses for those who need prescription reading glasses. Although some of the glasses may have slight imperfections due to their age and outdated manufacturing processes, the sunglasses are all delivered to you in brand-new condition and ready to wear. When it comes to pricing, Giant Vintage makes shopping retro styles accessible to most, with pairs as affordable as $18 and their higher-end Luxe line maxing out at $75.
This online store sells unworn vintage sunglasses from the ‘60s through the 00’s
What about UV protection?
Sunglasses aren’t just about style, they also offer a first line of defense against the dangerous effects of sun damage. Although all of the authentic vintage styles sold by Giant Vintage meet UV protection standards, the retailer is quick to point out that each pair meets the UV standards that were in place when the sunglasses were manufactured. This means that if you’re buying a pair of shades that were manufactured 20, 30, or 40 years ago, those standards may have changed and could be more strict today.
Flip-Pop Black 80s/90s Flip-Up Sunglasses
The Flip-Pop shades from Giant Vintage are a total throwback, and easily my favorite style of the bunch.
Of the three pairs of sunglasses I tested from Giant Vintage, the Flip-Pop Black 80s/90s Flip-Up Sunglasses were my absolute favorite. The circular lenses are unique and feature a specific aesthetic that meshes well with my personal style right now. This vintage-inspired style (meaning they are not true vintage) also features a flip-up lens feature that, in my expert opinion, is woefully missing from fashion today.
If you were around in the 90s, you couldn’t escape flip-up sunglasses, whether they were for novelty or function. In 2023, the flip-up lenses are a fun surprise that makes a bold statement that reads equal parts edgy and quirky. Additionally, these sunglasses feel well-made and substantial. They have a bit of heft to them and yet are comfortable to wear.
The Flip-Pop shades from Giant Vintage are a total throwback, and easily my favorite style of the bunch.
Absolutely Aviator 70s Sunglasses
The Absolutely Aviator 70s Sunglasses are fun and stylish.
Before we go any further, I need to confess that I’m somewhat obsessed with sunglasses. My own collection of shades began nearly 20 years ago and currently spans some 45 pairs. After a lifetime of collecting, I have a fairly good idea of the styles of sunglasses I gravitate towards. For this review, I requested the Flip-Pop Sunglasses (which I loved), but I also requested the Stud Wine Aviator Sunglasses and the (now, sadly sold out) Trig Black Night Driving Aviator Sunglasses.
In the spirit of full transparency, I was a bit disappointed when I received the shipment and didn’t find either of those pairs in the box. That being said, the Absolutely Aviator 70s Sunglasses that I received feature the classic teardrop shape that I’m fond of, so I excitedly tried them on. Though I enjoy the way they look and appreciate their fine quality and fun colorway, admittedly these sunglasses wouldn’t have been my first choice (or my second). They’re really great sunglasses, but they’re not right (for me.)
The Absolutely Aviator 70s Sunglasses are fun and stylish.
Control Aviator Sunglasses
The Control Aviators have a noticeable curve.
The more subdued Control Aviator Sunglasses totally threw me for a loop when I first saw them. They feature a black plastic frame and a classic aviator shape, but they also have a drastic, curved wrap-around design. This is another pair that I likely wouldn’t pick up in real life, as the design lends itself to a bug-eye look when I put them on.
That being said, like the other two pairs I received, these sunglasses are well made and super stylish—for someone whose style is a little edgier (read: cooler) than my own.
The Control Aviators have a noticeable curve to them
Is Giant Vintage worth it?
I love Giant Vintage as a source for authentic vintage sunglasses at a bargain price.
Definitely!
If you’re into throwback style, have wanted to jump on the tiny sunglasses trend, or just miss the styles that were popular during your childhood, Giant Vintage is a fantastic resource to collect vintage and vintage-inspired styles at a bargain. I loved the Flip-Pop shades, and already see some other 70s, 90s, and 00s styles that I’ll be shopping for in the future.
This online store sells unworn vintage sunglasses from the ‘60s through the 00’s
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