Vintage frames : Framing the stars

When most of us think of vintage sunglasses, we imagine dusty Value Village bins filled with lenseless, crooked old granny glasses or big, bug-eyed shades à la Nicole Ritchie. Luckily, Corey Shapiro and his Vintage Frames Com­pany are giving older sunglasses a better rap. Founded five years ago in Montreal, the Vintage Frames Company has now grown to house hundreds of thousands of pairs of unworn vintage glasses from the 1950s to the 1980s. With brands ranging from Cazal to Neostyle, Dior to Persol and Ray-Ban to Porsche, Shapiro’s company has become some­what of an international eyewear phenomenon. He sells to most of today’s top recording artists and actors and works with renowned boutiques to create unique in-store vintage shopping experiences. When I spoke to Shapiro, he had just returned from the MuchMusic Video Awards, where he sold frames to the likes of Miley Cyrus and Perez Hilton. As the largest supplier of vintage sunglasses to the fashion community worldwide, the Vintage Frames Company is not open to the public but operates on private appointments and consultations. So if you really loved that pair of sun­glasses your favorite singer was wearing in her recent video (although, I doubt you could nab yourself Gaga’s cigarette shades) or in this month’s magazine spread, Corey Shapiro is your man. The Vintage Frames Company’s online store will be opening in mid-July, in case private appointments aren’t your thing.