Video: our tribute to vintage style and French craftsmanship, in an exclusive collaboration with Lesca

Since the beginning of BonneGueule in 2007, I have always loved sunglasses , because they are one of the accessories that have the greatest impact on an outfit, including the item of clothing that everyone is looking at: your face.

For summer outfits, where we ultimately wear much less clothing than in winter, there are few accessories to brighten up an outfit, and sunglasses become all the more essential.

But for our first sunglasses, I wanted to rely on a French brand, with a solid heritage , because I find that vintage designs, in sunglasses, are often the most beautiful, with the most personality, without overdoing it.

Why? Because the designs of the 60s and 70s are marked by a creative revolution that affected many areas (architecture, furniture, automobiles, etc.).

We therefore turned to Lesca , a French brand with a 60-year heritage, founded by Joël Lesca, and now managed by his son Mathieu.

Lesca has been developing its own shapes for decades . They have a very large park of shapes. Some big brands are inspired by them. For example, Prada made a pair of glasses with a shape identical to one of the models in Lesca's collection.

Although he was planning to become a lawyer, Mathieu decided to get heavily involved in the development of the brand, taking charge of communication, brand identity, marketing and the collection.

And since he grew up in his father's eyewear workshops, it's a product he knows like the back of his hand (or nose?).

What I like about Lesca? It's the "thickness" in their designs: they don't hesitate to work with thick and assertive acetates , because Mathieu considers that glasses are not such an accessory in an outfit.

I immediately really liked Mathieu , because I completely recognize myself in his taste for timeless designs, spanning the decades, while having a real visual signature.

He dresses in a classic style, sometimes with workwear influences, so he is sensitive to the fact that his glasses can be worn very easily on a daily basis, exactly like my vision of BonneGueule clothing.

So there was something very interesting to do…

With Lesca's taste for thick acetates, it was clear that our collaboration had to go in this direction.

But I wanted to add a little touch of originality to it…

Some of you know that I really like olive/sage/foliage green tones , and what a surprise it was to see that it was precisely Lesca's signature shade!

So I wanted the green color to stand out in this collaboration, because I think it works really well on a pair of sunglasses, just like a pine green tie with a blue suit .

This is why on the Cain model, the “tortoiseshell” colored acetate is placed on another slightly green acetate plate, giving this unique coloring. This is very visible if you look at the part that rests on your nose, where the green plate is visible from the side.

For the models in our collaboration, the hinges are called “triple-point riveted”, with three legs in the rivet, very robust and durable, compared to two legs for entry-level glasses.

So we had to choose the shape of the glasses, or rather, the shapes. In fact, we couldn't decide, and so we went with two models: Mose XL and Cain.

We checked with Mathieu to make sure that these are models that fit the widest variety of faces.

After all, if the design of the chosen models dates back to the 50s and 60s respectively and they have survived the ages without aging, it is not for nothing!

It's a design dating from the 50s, from Joël Lesca's vintage archives , but paradoxically very current, which blends into all outfits.

If you are looking for an easy pair to wear with a casual shirt for example, this is the pair for you!

The original frame was smaller and Lesca made it bigger, hence the “XL”. However, the frame is not that big, they are not oversized glasses.

The shape is slightly rounded here . And in terms of color, these sunglasses have two shades of brown : a more chocolate brown on the upper part of the frame and a lighter brown on the lower part of the circle. The result: a slight gradient effect that gives depth to your look.

Another original feature: this is upcycled acetate , normally destined for waste, which is recovered in small quantities by Lesca to make limited series (because there are few quantities).

As for the lenses, they are polarized (they are equipped with several layers of protection and drastically reduce the sun's reflections, for clear and contrasted vision) and are made in Japan in the Fukui region by a Lesca partner very renowned in the eyewear industry. Yes, Japanese know-how is expressed beyond their fabrics that we regularly offer you in our collection.

But above all, they are mineral lenses! A high-end material, this makes the lenses practically scratch-proof and gives them great optical quality without distortion.

Category 3, this glass is suitable for strong light conditions and effectively protects you from the sun's rays, whether in the city, at the sea or even in the mountains.

This is a real premium lens that Mathieu described as “the best of the best, the type of lenses we offer for people who demand the best”. It is also the quality of this Japanese lens that explains the slightly higher price of this frame, compared to the other model, the Cain.

Last detail, the lenses are flat as was the case on vintage glasses , and not curved like on most of those that we find today.

Here's what Mathieu has to say about flat glasses:

Where does the name of this model come from?

It is actually a reference to the frame worn by the great British actor Michael Caine in the spy film Ipcress , released in 1965. The glasses were an integral part of his outfit as a counter-intelligence agent.

As an aside, it turns out that Michael Caine was friends with Sean Connery, who was playing another spy in the movies at the time. A certain James Bond, if you know him.

This Bond role stuck to Connery's skin, which frustrated him a little. To avoid this, when Caine took on his role in Ipcress, he looked for an element that would differentiate him, the actor, from the character he plays. Hence the idea of ​​wearing glasses.

The thing is, Michael Caine continued to wear these glasses in other films afterward, but also in his personal life. He had become a fan. And we understand why!

The distinctive element of the Cain is the upturned tenon . The tenon is the part of the glasses that joins the lens and the temple (attached to it by the hinge). In concrete terms, these glasses are slightly curved towards the back.

The acetate of the frame is a robust and malleable material: it can therefore be heated and slightly curved, without weakening it. The corners have been polished for a very curved effect, typical of the 60s and quite rare today.

In addition to fitting the natural shape of the face, I love this retro and assertive side , it is a frame that assumes itself and which gives +100 charisma points to practically any face.

As you approach the frame, you will notice a scaled pattern with brown spots on a dark green background , which we created exclusively with Lesca for this collaboration.

These are also mineral glasses, but this time made in France, by David Brunetti . Based in the Normandy region, he does coloring on mineral glass and offers exclusive assemblies and tints to Lesca.

A little special feature: David Brunetti is the last glass colorist on mineral glass working in France , and we are happy to give you access to this know-how as part of this collaboration.

This model is available in two versions:

- Category 3 dark lenses (60 units). As with the Mose XL, these lenses are suitable for conditions of strong light, “full sun”.

- Less dark, category 2 sun lenses (40 copies), suitable for intermediate light conditions.

But why this choice? Let me open a (big) parenthesis on the interest of having sunglasses with clear lenses, just “smoked”.

First of all, I would like to point out that even though these are clearer lenses, they still provide 100% protection against UV rays .

Please note, there are only about forty copies with clear lenses, it is a very limited edition, so don't delay if you like them.

I imagine that some of you have never tried clear lens sunglasses. So why did I choose this?

Yes, the first argument concerns style! This type of sunglasses brings something assertive to an outfit , it is a more original and assumed accessory than classic sunglasses.

Think of Luca and Jordan who wear them very regularly and you will have a good idea of ​​the stylistic interest of a pair of sunglasses with clear lenses.

Here is what Jordan says about clear lens sunglasses:

Clear lens glasses are very practical when:

• there is less sun than usual
• and you still want to wear sunglasses

And this kind of situation happens quite often : I'm thinking of days with a cloudy veil or, in my case, in summer when the sun has just set and I want to wear my sunglasses a little longer or even... to wear them indoors on certain occasions: for example, no need to take them off when you enter a store.

It's not for nothing that I saw a lot of them during the winter Pitti shows, because they are still furiously photogenic sunglasses !

There are 3 pairs , which provide 100% UV protection and are made in France :

• the Mose XL, category 3, with Japanese polarized mineral lenses, with an easy-to-wear design,
• the Cain, category 3 , with French mineral lenses, with a more racy shape,
• the Cain with clear lenses, with French mineral lenses, category 2 , to wear when there is less light and… for style!

So here are the two models in three versions for our very first collaboration on sunglasses, it was about time!

These glasses are already available in store and our eshop.