16/09/2026
EYES on DOPAMINE DRESSING...
ON YOUR FACE!
There was a time when choosing glasses meant asking one simple question.
"Do they make me look sensible?"
Thankfully, those days seem to be disappearing.
Instead, people are asking a much more interesting question:
"Do these make me happy?"
It's part of a growing fashion movement known as dopamine dressing - the idea that the colours we wear can genuinely influence how we feel. Bright colours, bold patterns and clothing that reflects our personality can all help boost confidence and lift our mood.
And according to EYES on St Albans, that trend has finally reached our faces.
"We've definitely noticed people becoming braver," says Jez Levy. "For years people would apologise for choosing something colourful. Now they're actively looking for frames that make them smile."
For EYES on St Albans, though, colourful eyewear isn't a new trend.
It's been quietly happening in Marshalswick for more than eight years.
Long before dopamine dressing became the latest fashion buzzword, Jez was encouraging customers to step outside their comfort zones and discover what a splash of colour could do.
Sometimes that meant a deep cobalt blue instead of black.
Sometimes a translucent emerald green.
Sometimes something gloriously orange that a customer would never have picked up themselves.
"We've always said, 'Just humour us and try them on,'" laughs Jez. "Nine times out of ten, that's the pair they end up falling in love with."
That philosophy has shaped the collections at EYES from the very beginning.
Brands such as Kirk & Kirk arrived in store because they challenged the idea that glasses had to be sensible, invisible or apologetic. Their signature translucent acrylic frames capture and play with light in extraordinary ways, creating colours that seem almost to glow.
"They're not loud for the sake of it," says Jez. "They're joyful."
More recently, the launch of the handcrafted JL Spex collection has taken that thinking one step further.
Designed by Jez himself and handmade in Italy, JL Spex celebrates colour, craftsmanship and a quietly rebellious attitude to eyewear. Named after St Albans pubs, they're designed to make people smile before they've even looked in the mirror.
Perhaps the rest of the world is finally catching up.
After years dominated by minimalist fashion, neutral palettes and playing it safe, people are embracing colour, individuality and optimism once again. Fashion writers have given it a name, but at EYES it's simply been part of the conversation since day one.
Of course, not everyone's workplace has quite caught up with colourful eyewear.
"We have lots of customers who have a 'work pair' and a 'weekend pair'," says Jez. "A more understated frame for Monday morning meetings, then something with a bit more personality for evenings, weekends and holidays."
Increasingly though, those two pairs are becoming more alike.
People are realising they don't have to leave their personality at the office door.
And that's perhaps the biggest change of all.
Choosing colour isn't really about fashion.
It's about confidence.
It's about giving yourself permission to wear something that reflects who you are rather than who you think you're supposed to be.
Eight years ago, convincing someone to choose bright blue instead of black often felt like a brave decision.
Today, many of those same customers are coming back and asking, "What's next?"
So perhaps the next time you're choosing new glasses, don't ask which pair disappears on your face.
Ask which pair brings it to life.
After all, if you're going to wear something every single day, shouldn't it make you smile every time you catch your reflection?
At EYES on St Albans, that's never been a trend.
It's simply how they've always done things.
