Hi,

You might remember about a month ago I tried Ciba Vision’s FreshLook Colours to make my eyes blue and what a difference they made. This time I am turning my eyes hazel to add a more subtle sparkle to my usually dull grey eyes, maybe it will also help brighten up this dull British weather!

It’s amazing what a difference coloured contact lenses make, one small change and I’m feeling a lot better about myself. These hazel contact lenses complement my brown hair colour perfectly or so I’ve been told…And I can try some different shades of make-up to get those hazel tints even more vibrant for a night out on the town.

At GetLenses we have a wide choice of hazel shades from FreshLook Colours, which offers a more intense and noticeable change, to FreshLook Colourblends for a more natural and subtle change that will still turn heads.

Not only do coloured contact lenses have all the benefits of normal contact lenses such as better peripheral vision, convenience and comfort but they also give you the opportunity to make a dramatic change - not only to your appearance but the way you feel.

If you want to see what a difference coloured contact lenses can make but don’t already wear lenses, no problem, just see an optician to make sure your eyes are suitable. Then, once you know your prescription, you can purchase from us and at the same time make some great savings on high-street prices.

Cheers,

Jenni

ON 3RD MAY we’ll be moving PostOptics to GetLenses. The truth is, PostOptics and GetLenses have always been run by the same parent company – anybody that has seen both websites will notice some distinct similarities. PostOptics and GetLenses sell exactly the same products, the phones are answered by exactly the same customer service people in York, the contact lenses and solutions come from exactly the same factories and everything’s stored in the same warehouse, ready for shipping.

So why are we doing this? First, GetLenses has a stronger name in that it’s better recognised by our suppliers – simply because more contact lenses are bought under the GetLenses brand. That means it has more buying power so the discounts are better. So one benefit of the move for PostOptics customers is that some of you will get even keener prices on your contact lenses and solutions.

Call us FREE

GetLenses also has a FREEPHONE number 0800 652 5569 – so your call is free when you phone from a BT landline. Why should you have to pay for the call when you’re buying our products or enquiring about them? You can still use the old PostOptics phone number if you wish, but why would you want to? If you’re currently a Post Optics customer, make a note of the FREEPHONE number now.

Find out about new products first

When we find exciting new products, we’ll be able to let you know about them quicker, too. After all, it’s easier and faster to manage one website than two.

We’ll be emailing all PostOptics customers to keep them informed about what’s going on and, from 3rd May, you’ll see a message on the PostOptics homepage that will redirect you to GetLenses.

Your account information remains the same

All your account information, username, password and order history will be moved over to their new home in GetLenses so, in that sense, nothing changes. You’ll still find your lenses and solutions in the same places and you can order in exactly the same way.

At first glance, it might look as if it’s only the name has changed. But if you look a little more closely, you’ll see that are some other subtle changes that all work to your advantage.

WOULD YOU WALK into a high-street electrical retailer, find a television and pay full price? If you were looking for a part for your car would you just take the main dealer’s price – even if your car was out of warranty? Would you get a new mobile phone without checking round to see what the other tariffs cost?

Of course not. That’s why you’re here. Not right here on this site; I mean, you’re on the internet. You don’t need me to tell you that one of the biggest benefits of the internet is being able to check prices and availability and order your stuff with a few clicks of the mouse.

“Why buy your contact lenses online?” isn’t the question. It’s “Why not?”

Like so many other things, getting cheap contact lenses online is fast and easy. Feel free to shop around for online contact lenses but remember that at GetLenses:

1. We’ll beat any high-street price – and that’s a promise
2. You get the original contact lenses from the genuine manufacturers – “cheap” contact lenses doesn’t mean cheap as in cheap-and-nasty; it means inexpensive
3. You don’t need to have your prescription to buy your contact lenses online
4. Shipping is FREE on all contact lenses orders
5. You can talk to our friendly – not to mention award-winning – customer service people when you need to
6. We stock over 1,000,000 contact lenses and all of the most popular lenses are in stock
7. We have a great range of attractive coloured contact lenses that are available with or without prescription

So why trudge to the opticians when you simply don’t need to. You can get cheap contact lenses online, here at GetLenses, delivered directly to your door. Keep off the high street and get online.

Until next time!

Jenni

Hello!

Someone sent me a link to this video the other day. See what you think.



It seems that using a combination of special contact lenses that allow multifocus (so even things that are very close to your eyes are clearly visible) and a head-up display (HUD) built into spectacles to project images into your eyes could become a reality.

The developers at Google have been working on this technology for a few years now but this little youtube film really puts it in perspective.

Meanwhile the BBC was recently reporting on similar technology called iOptik – but looks a lot closer to being something you can actually buy. Manufacturer and innovator Innovega has developed a prototype that’s so impressive, the Pentagon has shown significant interest in equipping the US Army and US Navy with the devices.

Who says contact lenses are just routine products!

1. With a different image projected into each eye, 3D movies will be much more realistic – and right in your face. Imagine Titanic or Avatar projected straight onto your retina.
2. Apparently, if you’re into gaming, instead of looking at a screen on the other side of the room, you’ll be able to immerse yourself in the whole experience. Every way you turn, the game will move with you – literally right in front of your eyes.
3. The Pentagon is showing an interest because they’re already using HUDs – but they’re much too bulky, especially for soldiers in the field.
4. There are rumours that to buy this new technology will eventually only be about the same price as an iPhone.

I know a certain someone who’d like a piece of the gaming action. But it’s difficult enough to get him off his Playstation and X-box thing as it is.

See you next time!

Jenni :-/

IF YOU HAVE a persistent stomachache, you go to the doctor. Toothache? You go to the dentist. It’s not rocket science. But most people only go to their optician if they think they need a new prescription for contact lenses or glasses. And, if the truth be told, we might only ever go to the optician when we want a new pair of specs and may as well have our eyes tested while we’re at it.

But did you know your optician can tell from your eye exam – or eye check as Boots Opticians are now calling it – much more about the general state of your health. Diabetes, for example, can be detected easily and early with an eye test – and your optician knows what to look for.

Get your eyes tested regularly – whether you think you need to or not.

Obviously, conditions that relate directly to the eye can be picked up with an eye test – it’s what it’s there for. But the trouble is, patients are often totally unaware of a potentially damaging disease until it’s too late.

Glaucoma is a disease that effectively kills the optic nerve – the roadway that transmits images from your eye to your brain. It is treatable but like many other devastating conditions, the earlier the problem is found, the better. An optician can also detect the beginnings cataracts before they start to cloud your vision permanently.

Macular degeneration – if you like being able to put a face to a name, keep it that way with regular eye checks.

Age-related macular degeneration typically affects adults who are 50 years old and over. It is a condition of the retina which leaves sufferers unable to see in the very centre of their field of view. The peripheral view is usually unaffected so you can go about your normal day-to-day business but recognising peoples’ faces or reading a number plate at a distance can be problematic or impossible. Again, get your eyes tested regularly and get treatment before it becomes a serious problem.

Can you get FREE eye tests?

If you work using a computer, you’re pregnant or diabetic, you may qualify for free eye tests, eye care, glasses and contact lenses. If you do work using a computer, ask your HR people how to go about getting a free eye test.

Then book a test with your optician – whether it’s Boots Opticians, Specsavers or a high-street independent – and be sure to get a copy of the prescription (it’s your legal right to be able to obtain it). That way you can come to GetLenses and save enormous amounts of cash compared to traditional opticians in the high street if you opt for contact lenses.

Hello!

You know how you go to YouTube to look for something and then something catches your eye and you watch that instead – and forget what you went there for… happens to me all the time. But anyway – I did find this from Acuvue: a complete video guide on how to put in and take out your contact lenses. It doesn’t matter whether they’re monthly contact lenses, daily contact lenses or even coloured contact lenses, I suppose.

A great guide for the new contact lens wearer

If you’ve been wearing contact lenses for a good while, you’ll have developed your own technique for putting your contact lenses in. But I also remember the first few times I tried – and I have to admit it was more than a bit of a fiddle. That’s why I’m putting this video guide up. I wish I’d seen this when I first started wearing contacts.

After a while, putting in contact lenses becomes second nature – but it does need a bit of practice. Here’s the advice in the video which all makes perfect sense. The voice-over’s a bit squeaky but so am I – so I can’t really complain.

Advice on putting your contact lenses in, direct from the makers of Acuvue

1. First of all, relax. Your lenses can’t get lost behind your eye, they won’t get stuck to your eye and it’s virtually impossible for them to fall out
2. Remember, you’re putting your lens on your eye, not in it.
3. Wash and dry your hands, thoroughly. You definitely don’t want dirt or germs in your eyes or on your lenses
4. Always start with your right eye – if you always do it that way, there’s less chance you’ll put the wrong lens in the wrong eye
5. Follow the instructions for your solutions if you’re using monthly lenses
6. You need a dry finger. Scoop the lens out of the case or out of the blister pack if you’re wearing dailies
7. Look at the lens. If it has a nice uniform edge, you’re ready to go. If it looks more like a bowl, it’s inside-out and you need to – as it says in the video – flip it
8. Separate your right eye lids: you’ve got your lens on your index finger so use your middle finger to pull down your bottom eye lid. With your other hand, lift your upper eye lid
9. Put the lens on your eye – straight in the middle or a little bit down and to the left or right, whatever feels more comfortable
10. When it’s in, gently release your eye lids and close your eye for a second, blink a couple of times and then look around to make sure your lens is perfectly centred

Then, just do the same for your left eye.

A word about make-up

Here’s my top tip: always put your contact lenses in before you put your make-up on. Two reasons: You don’t want bits of make-up getting on your lenses and irritating your eye. The other reason is just as practical. Think about it: watery eyes and make-up tend not to mix (no matter what they say in the TV ads). Your eyes are bound to water a bit when you put your lenses in and you don’t want that ruining your look!

Cheers!

Jenni

Hi!

I’ve been testing out some coloured contact lenses: blue contact lenses to be exact. Ciba Vision makes a range of coloured contact lenses called FreshLook Colors and they make a rather dramatic difference. You’ll see the effect on me when I’ve been for my makeover – can’t wait…

I’ve got grey-ish eyes. Not much colour to them at all really. So having vibrant, deep blue eyes is a pretty big change for me; subtle they are not. What’s more, we did a survey recently and it turned out that 48% of people prefer blue eyes.

What’s changed?

Here’s what surprised me when I wore the blue contact lenses out to meet the girls on Saturday. You wouldn’t think just changing the colour of your eyes would be all that noticeable – but it certainly is. Some people can’t put their finger on it and say that I look ‘different’ but they don’t know why. “Have you tinted your hair?” “I haven’t seen you in that shirt before…” There’s something different about you…”



Coloured contact lenses can change your whole appearance

The fun part’s to keep them guessing. Anyway, there are also FreshLook Colorblends which are much more subtle and work better with light-coloured eyes. And now we’re also selling the world’s only daily coloured contact lenses, FreshLook One Day.

You can get powerless coloured contact lenses but it’s still advisable to get checked out by your optician first – especially if your don’t normally wear contact lenses.

When I got home on Saturday night there was one person who didn’t notice any difference – and he knows who he is. But then I wonder whether he’d notice if I shaved my head and painted my face bright purple…

See you soon!

Jenni

You don’t know me, but I’m the one that’s been writing the blogs over the past couple of months. My name’s Jenni, I’m 30 in May and I really do work at GetLenses in their offices in north London. (We don’t farm out the blog posts to a retired, waistcoat-wearing journalist called Albert.)

Let me know if you want me to cover anything in these posts. You can email me here. Ask me questions – I can always go and ask our optician if it’s eye-health related.

My glasses are driving me nuts.

Anyway, what’s really getting me down this week? My glasses, that’s what. I got a bit of grit in my eye on Saturday morning and my optician said I should give my lenses a break until Wednesday (tomorrow). Not the lenses’ fault, the grit’s fault.

It has reminded me about why I started wearing contact lenses in the first place, though. Here’s why I think glasses are a pain.

1. The bridge of my nose is sore. And the backs of my ears. My glasses – even though they’re designer – are uncomfortable
2. I don’t like looking like a four eyed nerd. Saturday night wasn’t a night out. It was a nightmare out. It was just a bunch of girls who call themselves my friends but I was the butt of the jokes all night. And what’s the point of wearing make-up when no one can see it behind these thick bits of ugly plastic?
3. It’s like my vision goes almost two-dimensional. It’s rubbish. And I can’t perceive distance as well as I can with my contact lenses.
4. Come to that, I can’t really see properly unless I’m looking straight in front of me. I have to turn my head, up and down and to the sides, whenever I want to look at someone or something. Glasses really are a pain in the neck.
5. They fog up. Open the oven door, they fog up. Come in from the cold, they fog up. And have you tried riding a bike wearing glasses in the rain? Impossible.
6. Back to Saturday night. The club (as clubs often are) was very hot. So two options: run the risk of them flying off your gently perspiring face when you’re on the dance floor, or put them in your bag and not be able to see what you’re doing, where you’re going – or more importantly what anyone looks like ;-)
7. Sunday was pretty sunny and we went for a walk in the park. Correction. I went for more of a squint in the park because I couldn’t wear my sunglasses. What’s the point of having seven pairs of sunglasses if you can’t wear them?

OK, rant over. I’m looking forward to tomorrow and not having to wear these awful specs. And I’ll be in a better mood.

Trying contact lenses

I’m lucky really, though. I’m allowed to try all different sorts of lenses as long as I ask our in-house optician if it’s OK first.

I’ve been round the lenses block a little bit recently. So far, I’ve tried:

• Focus Dailies All Day Comfort
• 1-Day Acuvue Moist
• Acuvue Oasys
• Acuvue Trueye
• Focus Dailies Aquacomfort Plus
• Focus Dailies Toric
• Air Optix Aqua

Which are our top-selling contact lenses. I’m going to try coloured contact lenses soon – I’ll report back.

Do let me know if you want me to talk about anything in particular on these blog pages. Just email me here.

ARE YOU BUYING own-brand contact lenses from high-street opticians like Boots Opticians or Vision Express? Do you feel that you have to buy their brand of lenses – just because the optician told you so? Well, here’s the news: you simply don’t have to pay high-street prices and there’s every reason why you should buy your contacts and solutions online instead.

Here’s why.

• It’s invariably cheaper. At GetLenses, we guarantee to beat the price of any high street optician.

• It’s more convenient. We’ll deliver to your door. So now there’s no need for you to trudge to the high-street optician to get your lenses or solutions and carry heavy bottles home yourself.

• They’re exactly the same lenses. From the same factory. Made on the same machines. By the same people. There’s no difference in quality – it is only the box that’s printed differently.

So why do the opticians do this?

Easy. They want to make as much money out of you as possible. They’ve got shops and staff and bills to pay. They’ve got expensive ad campaigns to entice you into their stores. They must make much more of a profit to survive. They do this, principally, by doing two things. They charge more. And they try to confuse you.

With own-brand lenses, it can be difficult for you to find the exact specification of your lenses. Plus, many people think they need to stick to the same brand – and, clearly, by virtue of being own-brand, you can only buy them from one chain of shops.

And, be warned, there’s one more thing that some opticians try to do to keep you locked in to buying from their shop: they make excuses about giving you your prescription. “The printer’s broken.” “We can’t give it to you because of the Data Protection Act.” “That’s confidential information.” No, no, no. If an optician checks your eyes and you need a prescription, it’s your prescription because you’ve paid for it. It belongs to you and you have a legal right to ask for it and get it.

Hopefully, you won’t have any problem getting your prescription. And once you’ve got hold of it, you can send it to us. We’ll check it and then you can order your lenses. They’ll almost certainly be significantly cheaper and, like we said before, we’ll deliver straight to your door.

Find your lenses

If you’re wearing own-brand lenses, just find them on our Opticians Own Brand Conversion Chart and click to order the equivalent. Remember, when we say ‘equivalent’, we mean it: they’re the exact same lenses.

London, February 2012—The boffins at GetLenses.co.uk have been doing some “depth research” about how people relate to their contact lenses and what they like about them. It’s called “depth” research because a relatively small number of people are interviewed face-to-face, in depth, about their requirements, hopes, desires, feelings and opinions. See what points you agree with.

“I can see better with my contacts rather than glasses” Angela, a graphic designer from Stoke-on-Trent, UK, said: “I tell my friends who wear glasses that I can see much more clearly but they don’t believe me. And, anyway, I don’t want to be described as that ‘girl with glasses’.” With contacts, your peripheral vision is improved – there are no frames to get in the way, and there’s no gap to the sides, above and below.

“It’s easier to put my make-up on” “Years ago, before I wore contacts,” said Susan, an entertainments manager from Croydon UK, “I bought a pair of those flip-up spectacles contraptions, where each lens is on hinges and it lifts up out of the way – so at least you’ve got one good eye to see with. But putting mascara on through the frame was like trying to wallpaper the hallway through the letterbox.” When Susan switched to contacts, she found it much easier. “But remember the rule,” she said. “Contacts first, make-up second. Or you’ll get eyeliner and mascara all over your face.”

“Contacts don’t get steamed up.” Robbie, an architect from Barnet, UK, said: “My glasses steam up – exactly when I don’t want them to. Like when you’re taking food out of the oven and you find yourself huffing and puffing upwards to clear your specs before you put the dish down – and meanwhile your hands are catching fire through the oven gloves.” Robbie also told us about a time when he walked out of the freezing cold and into a nightclub and his glasses steamed up. He walked up behind his girlfriend and greeted her rather over-enthusiastically. It wasn’t his girlfriend.

“Rain, rain, go away!” A number of the GetLenses customers all complained about wearing their glasses in the wet. Richard, a pharmacy student from Bradford said: “You can’t wipe your glasses by blinking. You have to stop every five minutes and dry them. Contacts are much better when it’s raining. Which it does quite a lot here.” And Helen, a fitness instructor from Epping, told us: “How are you supposed to exercise with specs on? If you’re doing it right, you’re making vigorous movements and sweating. Those glasses are heading for the floor. Contacts are the way forward.”

“I can wear any sunglasses I want.” “I love being able to wear shades that suit my mood and the occasion,” Leanne, a part-time model from Aylesbury told us. “If you don’t have contacts, you have to have prescription sunglasses. At the last count, I’ve got 11 pairs and – who knows? – this afternoon, it might be 12.” If your prescription changes, you only need to change your lenses.

“My glasses won’t stay put.” Bill, a marketing director from Tooting, South-West London, has a problem with his glasses staying where they should be. “I’m always having to shove them back onto the bridge of my nose,” he complained. “I’ve got quite a strong prescription and, quite simply, they’re heavy – even with lightweight lenses. I’ve got a free two-week trial of daily contact lenses from my optician coming up. Can’t wait.”

“My baby boy’s at that grabby stage.” “Anything shiny, he wants it,” says Gina from Manchester. “I’ve been through two pairs of decent glasses in the past three weeks. Once, he was bouncing on my knee and I turned to talk to someone – I wasn’t looking and he grabbed them right off my face, bent them in half and flung them across the kitchen. They were history. Then, I was changing him and he booted them off my nose, I couldn’t see and I stood on them. I’m going to make a point of wearing my contacts from when I get up to when he goes to bed.”

“It’s harder to see properly when driving at night.” Even with scratch-resistant spectacle lenses, it doesn’t take long for tiny hairline scratches to appear on the surface, as Marie-Anne, a sales representative from Hull readily testified. “The last thing I need is headlights coming at me like giant blinding starbursts. With my dailies, that just doesn’t happen – it’s much safer.”

“My contact lenses don’t get dirty.” A big bugbear with just about everyone spoken to was that their glasses got dirty and smudged with fingerprints. “I don’t intentionally touch my glasses. Why are they always so filthy?” said Angela. Robbie concurred: “I’ve never got one of those special cloths with me. Still, I suppose that’s what the corner of my shirt’s for…”

“It’s about confidence as well as comfort and convenience.” Customers had plenty of derogatory things to say about having to wear spectacles – which is why they love their contact lenses. Marie-Anne added: “Even if it sounds a little bit vain, I do feel more confident in my contacts rather than wearing my specs. I wouldn’t dream of doing an important presentation or going to see a valuable client without wearing my contacts. Glasses just make me feel old and unattractive. And don’t get me started on dating…”

In all, GetLenses’ researchers interviewed sixty people and the consensus was a resounding preference towards contact lenses for all the reasons above and more. If you would like to make the switch from specs to contacts, make an appointment with your optician for a fitting. In the end, only you can decide whether contact lenses are right for you – so hunt around the high street and see which opticians are doing free trials.