Best Multipurpose Solutions for Circle Lenses

Here are some of our top picks for solutions to cleanse and store your colored contacts and circle lenses.

OPTI-FREE Replenish & Express

Hands down OPTI-FREE is my favourite brand of contact lens solution.  You know how when you put on contact lenses, you get that initial stinging sensation?  Especially when it's early in the morning and your eyes are still sensitive to light?  I've never gotten that with Opti-Free.
I also find that pre-soaking my lenses in Opti-Free makes my eyes less prone to dryness throughout the day.  My eyes feel quite comfortable all day long.  Sometimes, my lenses become blurry due to dryness, but I haven't experienced that with Opti-Free treated lenses.
I haven't noticed any difference in comfort levels between the Replenish and Express versions so they're pretty much the same for me.  The Express is "express" because its formula supposedly dissolves the protein deposits on the lenses for you so you don't have to manually rub your lenses.  However, I read a paper the other day about how rubbing your lenses significantly reduces the deposits on the lens compared to no rubbing, even though multipurpose solution was used.  So make sure to rub your lenses; 20 - 30 seconds twice per day is nothing!
You can buy this solution at almost any optical store and drugstore.


ReNu Multiplus

This brand is only so-so for me.  In the morning, I sometimes experience the stinging sensation described earlier when initially putting on contact lenses.  Also, I find that this solution doesn't help my eyes retain moisture as much as the Opti-Free brand ones do, so my lenses are prone to bluriness later in the day.  I can't really think of any aspect in which this one wins over Opti-Free...maybe slightly cheaper price?  It's usually available as a free sample when you get clear prescripted contacts at your optical store. 


ReNu Fresh

I've had better experiences with this one than with the MultiPlus.  ReNU Fresh keeps my eyes as comfortable throughout the day as Opti-Free does.  No initial stinging sensation as well.  However, I got blurry lenses sometimes, but only at the very end of the day (after 10+ hours of wearing the lenses...which you aren't supposed to do anyway).  I think this is cheaper than Opti-Free, so more bang for your buck.
Get it at your local drugstore.  I haven't seen this one in value pack format.

Hope this post helps you on choosing your contact lens solution!

St. Patrick's Day Sale at EyeCandy's

Happy St. Pattie's, everyone!  Even if you don't celebrate it, today's your lucky day! At EyeCandy's, we're offering 20% OFF all green colored contacts and green circle lenses for today and tomorrow (17th to 18th Mar, 2013).  If you follow us regularly, you'll know that we don't do 20% off often, so do take advantage of this deal!

Happy shopping lovelies! <3

Google

GEO Nudy Quarter Brown: A Staple for Any Circle Lens Wardrobe

The circle lens industry has been incredibly active over the past 5 or 6 years. There are literally thousands of patterns, colors and designs that have made their debuts over this time. Some of them had their 15 minutes of fame, having their brief burst of popularity quickly extinguished by newer, more exciting designs. (Remember the Bescon Tutti or the Pop C. Dark lenses, anyone?) A handful of others, however, have withstood the test of time and remained consistent sellers from the start. One of these definitely the hugely popular GEO Nudy Quarter Series; this circle lens in Brown is one which I find myself defaulting to whenever I'm in a rush or just too overwhelmed with choice!

Color & Design: 

The GEO Nudy Quarter Brown consists of the famous speckled pattern in a shade of beige which has underlying yellow tones. On my dark Asian eyes, this light color shows up very well, though light-eyed wearers might get a more subdued effect. The Nudy Quarter Brown lens matches well with both light pastel eyeshadow during the day, and looks nice with darker smokey shadow for night. Thumbs up for versatility. The finely detailed dot pattern gives a pretty crystalline effect. I also like how the limbal ring is thin so it adds a subtle line of definition to the iris (I find that lenses without a dark rim make me look quite ghastly).  These lenses are by no means "like-my-own-eyes-but-better" kind of natural, so pairing it with basic eyeliner and mascara is a must.

As you can see, there is a considerable "halo" effect, referring to the white (sclera) portion of the eye that shows through the translucent parts of the lens. I don't really care for this, but there are people on either side of the fence.

Enlargement: 

I feel 14.0-14.2mm is the perfect diameter for circle lenses (at least for small to medium sized Asian eyes), but I am giving 4 stars because most people like 14.5mm+.  People with already big eyes may find the enlargement of this lens to be insufficient.  Anyway, to compare with other lenses in the same "class," the GEO Nudy Quarter is bigger than the GEO Tri-Color World and looks bigger than the GEO Angel, though all these are labelled 14.2mm.

Comfort: 

GEO Magic Color contacts are just ok in comfort. Rohto Lycee eye drops were needed after 3 hours of wear and consistently throughout the day. (For reference, my 5/5 comfort rating for circle goes to NEO Vision monthly lenses and Bausch & Lomb LACELLE)

All in all, the GEO Nudy Quarter Brown circle contacts are a staple. They're like a pair of shoes which can take you from day to night. I hope that this didn't bore you guys too much as I am sure there are more than tonnes of other reviews on the GEO Nudy Quarter series; but my goal was just to share one of the cosmetic lenses that has attained HG status in my makeup drawer!

GEO Nudy Quarter Series can be purchased here on EyeCandy's website for $24.39 plus free worldwide shipping.

xoxo,
Coco

Top 5 Most Bizarre Circle Lenses Ever

Here in Asia, the cosmetic contact lens industry has been exploding for the past 3 or so years.  "Color con" is the all-encompasing term that you'll hear most often hear, referring to enlarging circle lenses, non-enlarging, regular colored contacts and costume contacts (e.g. the ones used for cosplay or theatre).  New designs are being pushed out literally every single week, endorsed by famous "net idols" ("regular people" bloggers who became like actual celebrities).  A lot of them are actually rebranded models that have been selling well for years and are well-liked by most people.  But there are certainly numerous ones which, well, seem like they were designed by an artist on crack (or just someone with a rather bizarre sense of aesthetics).  Here we present to you the top 5 weirdest circle lenses ever conceived:

5. Butterfly Circle Lenses

I have never liked butterflies, so this one just freaks me out.  Maybe it would be an interesting addition to a "Fairy Queen of the Amazon" costume, but otherwise, just...no.  Isn't the thought of having little bugs in your eyes a bit frightening anyway?

4. "Pastel Rainbow" Circle Lenses

I'm not sure I quite get the aesthetics of the jagged edges here.  They look like stickers.  I don't think anyone would wear them except for perhaps costume purposes.  I think they'd definitely be more acceptable if the pattern was round and not spiky, since the coloration itself isn't all that bad.

Here's another jagged one with a crazy carnival theme striped pattern.

Does the insane design not remind you of this: 

Yuck, right?

3. Harry Potter Circle Lenses

Now just when you thought copycat products from China couldn't get any weirder, here comes the world's most beloved wizard - in circle lens form! Actually, the only "Harry Potter" part of this lens is the name and packaging.  I guess these Chinese companies will use anything that's trending to market their product despite its irrelevancy.  Harry Potter aside, the design is an unappealing one consisting of little colored knobs outlined in black.

2. "Show-Mix" Glitter Circle Lens

I'm not bold enough to wear these, but they do look quite interesting.  I'm curious as to how the fine glitter was so densely incorporated into the design.  These certainly look like colored contacts on steroids, but the bizarre part of this isn't the pattern itself.  Just take a look at the promo pics this company put out below:

What an amazingly appealing set of pictures, huh?  Perhaps the demo eyeball was the closest thing they had since you can't try on the lenses yourself.

and the #1 spot goes to...
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...

...

...

1. Hello Kitty Circle Lenses

You must be thinking WTH right?  You knew Asians were into Hello Kitty, but not to this extent!  Really, what could be more romantic than staring into someone's eyes, getting lost in their gaze and...omg, wait, what is that...are those...CAT FACES in your eyes?!?!  Recommended for creeping people out and as a prank gift to your Hello Kitty fanatic friends.  Needless to say, these are costume lenses for sure, and will definitely get people talking about your contacts (if you like that).

Review of GEO Mari Gold Violet

Valentine's Day was yesterday, I thought it'd be relevant to write a review on a more "romantic" color lens like violet.  Pink lenses are also fantastic but, between the two, I think that violet is definitely the more "neutral" or "wearable" color.  Out of all circle lens colors available, violet is actually one of the least popular; and I must admit that I never found an opportunity for wearing this color until a photo of Elizabeth Taylor's violet eyes piqued my interest.

The GEO Mari Gold series is definitely one of my favorites! What sets this series apart from other common 2-tone designs is the light-scattering effect of the gold particles in the centre of the lens.  The first comment from people who see me wearing Mari Gold violet is "Wow, cool, I like your violet contacts" and then when they look a little closer and notice the metallic pigments, it turns into "Omigosh! So pretty!!"

Color & Design:

The coloration of Mari Gold Violet is visibly violet.  It doesn't appear muted on my dark brown eyes so I think it would work well with lighter eye colors as well.  The gold flakes in the lens really do show up (even in dim indoor lighting).  These circle lenses would work equally well for "daytime wear" as well as for more special events like a date or a night out.  I enjoy wearing this one with just very simple eye makeup, such as a shimmery light pink eyeshadow and cat-eye eyeliner.

Enlargement:

The enlargement of the Mari Gold lens is sufficient for my needs.  Anything more and I will start to look bug-eyed.  I need to wear at minimum eyeliner + mascara with this lens to make it work.  People with already big eyes may not find that this lens gives them much enlargement.

Do you think it fills up too much of my eye space?  Let me know what you think.

Comfort:

This circle lens was quite comfortable for me. They are more comfortable than my other GEO Magic Color lenses produced in 2010.  They're definitely changing their formula for the better! I used Rohto Lycee eye drops after 5 hours. (For reference, my 5/5 comfort rating for circle goes to NEO Vision monthly lenses and Bausch & Lomb LACELLE)


GEO Mari Gold Violet can be purchased here on EyeCandy's website for $26.88 plus free worldwide shipping.

- Coco

February Sales are ON now at EyeCandy's!

Hey everyone! We're having a February Sale now on our website www.eyecandys.com.  From 01/02 until 14/02, you can get 15% OFF hundreds of items in the "February Sale" category.  There's no minimum purchase required.

Just use the coupon code "FEBSALE13" at checkout to apply the discount!

Happy shopping lovelies!

Review of NEO Ruby Queen Green

Today I wanted to share with you a green circle lens from one of NEO Vision's most underrated lines, the Ruby Queen series.  From the time that it debuted last year, I've always been intrigued about diamond patterns because they looked stunning on other models.  I've tried the basic diamond designs like the GEO XTRA Diamond Series and some other funky 3/4 tone ones and found that I was never too fond of any of them because of their huge diameter.  I gave up on them until I found out that NEO Vision released a faceted design in 14.2mm which was perfect for me!

Color & Design:

I love how the Ruby Queen Green looks on my eyes!  The trick in a cleverly designed diamond pattern circle lens is having just the right degrees of opacity in certain "facets" to reflect the underlying eye color, and transparency in others to show off highlights.  This lens does just what I want - it makes my eyes look more illuminated.  The green color is also not too bright and natural enough to pass off for "daily wear."

Enlargement:

As you can tell from this picture, the enlargement effect is quite decent at 14.2mm diameter.  It's definitely large enough to make a difference without going overboard.  No "alien-eyes" with this.  For comparison, these enlarge more than the Dali Brown lenses despite having the same 14.2mm diameter because the Ruby Queen's design reaches the edge of the lens.

Comfort:

NEO Vision lenses are always comfortable for me.  They're more comfortable than GEO lenses.  Used eye drops once during my 8-hour wear.  (For reference, my 5/5 comfort rating for circle goes to NEO Vision monthly lenses and Bausch & Lomb LACELLE)

Hope that this review was informative for those of you who are interested in NEO Vision circle lenses!

Ruby Queen Green can be purchased here on EyeCandy's website for $29.60 plus free worldwide shipping.

- Coco