The order process can be broken down into few easy stages

1. Select your frame, colour and size
2. Enter your prescription details
3. Choose the type of lenses required
4. Checkout

Select Your Frame

The frame selection and prescriptions have been discussed previously so we will touch briefly again on these before concentrating on lens selection.

Once you have selected your frames you need to select the colour and size, these are selected in the highlighted areas using drop down boxes.

If you wish to purchase the frame only and have lenses fitted by your Optician then select the “But Frames Only” option and you will be directed straight to checkout.

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Adding your Prescription Lenses

If you wish to add prescription lenses then click “Buy with prescription”. Our lenses are a fraction of the High street price and will save you significant amounts of money!

Enter your prescription Details

You will then be asked to complete the prescription form. A typical prescription would be -

Use the drop down boxes and overtype the axis values

TAKE EXTRA CARE TO ENSURE THE CORRECT SIGN (+ OR -) HAS BEEN SELECTED FOR SPH & CYL VALUES

We only need the near addition/Reading Addition or ADD if you are ordering specific reading glasses, varifocal or bifocals. If you are under 40-45 it is unlikely you will have an ADD on your prescription.

For additional help please refer to “understanding your prescription”.

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Selecting your lenses

Over the last 4 years we have sold thousands of pairs of spectacles online and by dong this have gained a huge amount of experience and knowledge. This has allowed us to develop a lens wizard that enables you to select your perfect lenses with confidence in a few easy steps.

The Lens wizard will present you with options to build a lens design tailored for your needs. More importantly the lens wizard will only present options that are suitable for the type of lens you want!

Each step is supported by help prompts and in full detail below.

Step 1 - Select Lens Type

This is the part where you decide the form of lens you want to order.

Click the drop down box and you will be presented with 4 options (Distance lenses, reading lenses, Bifocal lenses & Varifocal lenses)

Distance lenses

These are the most common type of lens and are commonly worn most of the time. They are called “distance” lenses as they correct a defect in distance vision. However if you are under the age of 40-45 you will also be able to read in these and probably wear them all the time.

Reading Lenses

When we get to the age of 40+ the muscles in the eye don’t work as effectively as they used to. This results in it being harder to red and see close objects. When this happens an additional power is required called the “reading addition” or “ADD”. This is a + powered prescription (eg+2.25) and will be the same for both eyes. A reading lens is a one that is designed specifically for reading up close and to make this we require the SPH, CYL, AXIS and ADD

As reading glasses are designed for close work only they will be blurred if you were to wear these and look in the distance. If you require lenses that allow distance and reading vision you should consider bifocal or varifocal lenses.

Bifocal Lenses

This is a lens that contains the distance and reading prescription. The reading prescription is located in an area at the bottom nasal part of the lenses and is visible as a semi circle shape.

As there are 2 definite areas of prescription there is sometimes a noticeable “jump” when the wearer looks into the reading segment. This issue is overcome by the use of modern varifocal designs. However, bifocals are a good cost effective way of including distance & reading vision in the one pair for glasses.

Varifcocal Lenses

You can now order the highest quality Varifocal lenses online at Vision2you.

Varifocals are lenses that include the distance, intermediate and reading prescription all in the one pair. Unlike bifocals there is no “jump” when looking between the different areas as it is blended carefully so the transitions are smooth. There are also no visible lines on the lens. The varifocal lens is generally considered to be visually and cosmetically superior to bifocals. We will look at the different types of varifocal in section “final lens decisions”

	In a reading lens objects that are close up will appear clear but distant objects are blurred.
	In a bifocal both distant and close objects are clear but there may be some blurring of intermediate objects The segment containing the reading prescription is visible as a semi circle.
	In a varifocal all distances are focussed and there are no lines or segments.

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Step 2 - Select Lens Material

Once you have selected the Lens type the lens wizard will prompt you to select the lens material you would like the lenses made from. You will be presented with different “indexes of lens materials” (standard, 1.6 index, 1.67 index, and 1.74 index)

The index of a lens (refractive index) is essentially how dense the material is. In a nutshell the denser the material, the less of it is required and thus lenses will be thinner and lighter.

The choice of lens index is based on the prescription and as a general guideline:

The above is a general guideline to lens materials and there are other factors to consider.

If you have selected a plastic frame then the rim will be thicker and will cover more lens thickness and a lower index lens maybe ok. Conversely a fine metal rim would show more lens edge and a higher index choice would be more suitable.

If you have a CYL power of over + or – 2.00 you may also want to consider a higher level of index.

We recommend a minimum of 1.6 index for all rimless or half rim frames as this is more resistant to chipping and breakage than standard.

REMEMBER! If you have any queries then call us or email us via the home page. You can email us 7 days a week between 9.00am and 10.00pm for an answer from qualified opticians within 20 minutes.

All orders are checked by a qualified optician so if we have any queries or recommendations on lens material for your order we will contact you before they are made.

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Step 3 - The Final Decision

So far we have selected the purpose and the form of the glasses and also the material they are to be made from. The next stage is to customise the lenses!

There are several options that are applicable to Distance, Reading, Bifocal and Varifocal lenses and we will explain those as a generic group.

Scratch Resistant coatings

This is a hardening process that makes the plastic lenses tougher and more resilient to scratches. This does not make the lenses scratch proof but under normal usage they are less likely to. All of our lenses come with this as plastic is a very “soft material without it

Anti reflection coating

This coating is also known as reflection free, anti-glare and multi coated anti-reflection (MAR). The coating reduces the reflection on the front surface of the lens and thus reduces glare from bright objects (e.g. PC screens, oncoming headlights at night).

	Without anti- reflection coatings
	With anti- reflection coatings

As the reflections are reduced they also look cosmetically superior as an onlooker can see your eyes as a pose to the reflections of themselves and what is behind.

The Essilor crizal alize coatings are higher quality reflection free coatings and offer a more effective anti reflective surface. They are also easier to clean and smudge less.

The Crizal Alize Coating is the ultimate reflection free – scratch resistant coating. With hydrophobic properties and scotchguard protection offer the ultimate in repelling dust and smudges. The coating also reduces reflections 30% more than crizal alize.

Further info can be seen at:

http://www.essilor.co.uk/lensinfo/coatings/crizalforte.html

http://www.essilor.co.uk/lensinfo/coatings/crizalalize.html

Transition Lenses/ Sunsensor

Transition / sunsensor lenses are lenses that go darker in the sun and lighter indoors. They are also known as Reactions and photochromic lenses. The lenses are activated by UV light and take a few full changes before they start to work effectively. As the lenses rely on UV they do not change fully inside a car, unless you are driving a convertible of course! The windows in cars are designed to block UV to prevent upholstery fading.

Both Kodak sunsensors and essilor transitions are of excellent quality and are available in brown or grey tints.

Sunglass tints

We can supply sunglass tints in the colour listed online. Tints can be supplied as dark sunglass tints or light cosmetic tints.

Polarised sunglass lenses

Polarised lenses work by only allowing vertical light waves through, horizontal light is absorbed. Light is reflected horizontally which is essentially what glare is, reflected horizontal light. Therefore any reflected light is removed yet direct light is visible.

The results meant that it is possible to see clearly when sailing without the worry of having strong glare reflected into your eyes, even though you are wearing sunglasses. Also, when driving glare from the road and from other cars is removed reducing eye fatigue and a much more comfortable drive. The lenses are also useful for fishing or water sport as they allow you to “see” into the water. As side effect of the polarisation is they can sometimes create odd colour fringes or an “oil slick pattern when looking at phones, LCD displays etc

Varifocal Lenses

The highest quality Varifocal lenses are now available to order online from Vision2you.

Varifocal is a generic term for a lens that has one of the surfaced blended to incorporate the distance, intermediate and reading prescription. Before we discuss the lens options let’s have a look at what a varifocal is and how it works.

This is a basic plot of a varifocal lens. The plot shows the distance vision area, the location of the pupil. , the intermediate vision corridor and the area of near vision. The shaded areas on the side, although not visible, are slightly distorted. The differences between varifocal designs is how distorted these areas are and the width of the intermediate and reading areas. Clearly the wider these 2 areas and the lower the level of distortion the better! Old designs of varifocals used to have high levels of distortion and narrow intermediate corridors. This sometimes made wearers feel “seasick” when looking up and down. Thankfully those days are long gone and varifocals are now very easy to wear.

Our premium design varifocal has wider intermediate and reading areas than the standard design and also has softer peripheral areas.

There are a whole plethora of other lenses which we can supply. To simplify things we have narrowed our online choice down to the two preceding lenses and those from Essilor. The Varilux brand of lenses is considered by most professionals to be the best Varifocal lenses available. The ellipse lens is especially good for smaller frames and has excellent specifications.

The varilux Physio is one of the best varifocal lenses available. Using wave front management systems the lens offers wide, aberration free areas and the ultimate varifocal experience.

If you would like to read more about the Varilux lenses more detailed information can be viewed at http://www.essilor.co.uk/lensinfo/pdfs/Ellipse%20Brochure.pdf

http://www.essilor.co.uk/lensinfo/pdfs/PhysioBrochure.pdf

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Ordering a Varifocal

Your varifocal order can be completed online by selecting the frame and relevant lenses. Due to the advances in technology nearly all frames are suitable for varifocals, even the smaller ones.

There are certain measurements that are required for a varifocal lens to be aligned. Using over 50 years of optical experience we have designed a highly successful method of dispensing varifocals. Your frame will be sent out to you prior to having lenses fitted and we ask you to take a digital photo of the frame being worn. This photo need only include the frame and the 2 eyes and is straightforward to take. We will, however, supply a written guide and telephone/ email support. The photo is then emailed to us so we can confirm the measurements and alignment. Once approved the frame is then returned to have lenses fitted.

There is a common misconception that frames have to be a certain depth and size to have a varifocal lens fitted. Whilst this is true to a certain extent it is actually the depth of lens available below the pupil that is important and not the overall lens size. Therefore the critical element is how the frame fits on the face and also ensuring an appropriate design is fitted. During this process we will confirm both of these factors to ensure you and your varifocals become great friends!

REMEMBER! If you have any queries then call us or email us via the home page. You can email us 7 days a week between 9.00am and 10.00pm for an answer from qualified opticians within 20 minutes.

Congratulations. You have built you perfect spectacles! Simply follow the checkout steps and confirm the details to complete your order. We usually despatch single vision orders in 7-10 working days and rimless in 10-14 working days. Due to the order process on varifocals these take a little longer.

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