The name- as you might imagine- isn’t taken from the original designers but more a reflection of their functional purpose. Ray Ban– meaning literally “rays from the sun being blocked”, or “sun block” has stuck to become one of the most recognizable brand names around the world. Originally the design was centred on a green lens and had a plastic frame, before the name Aviator was coined and the design patented a year later with a metal frame worked in for a cheap ray-ban outdoorsman craft mark of quality.
By the 60’s musicians and film stars had a begun to popularize these frames in fashion and they have become synonymous with stars such as Jim Morrison, The Beatles, and later in the 80’s Top Gun’s Tom Cruise and Freddie Mercury.
Since the early days the brand have extended their dominance over the sunglasses market with a few other iconic designs such as the Wayfarer and Clubmaster which are available online now at Mainline Menswear.
The Aviator may not have changed much in its existence to date, but Ray Ban have shown they do have a creative sense of innovation through their constant appetite for designing new models. This year the new creation comes in the form of the Cats 5000 frame which is an oversized futuristic interpret of the classic aviator, coming with a redesigned plastic frame and a polarized lens. Another addition is that of the tortoise-shelled frame into classic frames such as the Clubmaster and Wayfarer, adding a touch of classic retro style and tapping into the huge current demand for it.
Before the days of Luxottica the brand had initiated the production of previously unheard of technology in the eye-wear market such as a sweat bar protection for the eye and a frame designed specifically for the outdoor sportsman of the time which were invariably fishermen or cheap ray-ban sunglasses Later down the line they became responsible for ideas such as the Folding Wayfarer and the light sensitive yellow photo-chromic lens in 1978- this darkened with changing light and temperature- not forgetting the originally styled mirrored lens which has transferred through multiple brands and styles of sunglasses.
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