mikep@ism780c.UUCP (Michael A. Petonic) (11/14/87)
Ok, I thought I posted this once when the subject was new. There have been several people who said that they thought tinted contacts that make one's eyes lighter are not possible. They are. I have them on at this very minute. Here's the dupe... They are JUST like any other EXTENDED wear soft (hydrophilic) contact lenses. I used to wear DAILY wear, then extended wear, and now I've graduated to extended color. For comfort, the colored one's are as comfortable as the extended (which are more comfortable than the daily, in my opinion). I've got naturally medium to dark brown eyes and they make my eyes look stunningly blue. I've tried other colors like auqa, green and hazel, but found blue to be the most appealling for and by me. Which is kind of strange, because since I am 1/2 Oriental, 1/4 German and 1/4 Czeck, the mixed heritage looks kind of unique anyway. Combined with the blue eyes and darker than normal skin color, it usually freaks people. Does look ``natural'' though... BTW: The people who freak are the one's who knew me before and saw the change. Hardly subtle. They are not totally impregnated with material. From looking at them closely, it seems as though the material were put through some type of matrix or something to form a pattern of the coloring around the pupils of your eyes. They do not cover your pupils, so it doesn't interfere with your vision (aside for correcting it, in my case). You CAN get them in non-prescription modes, if you just want to change your eye color. They cost about $300 for the exam, cleaning kit and everything (of course, including the lenses). Don't always believe the "$75 a lens" deal. After everything, it's around $300. Most extended wear lenses only cost around $75 total. Is it worth it? I don't know, my parents bought them for me. I'm not sure if I would have forked out the bucks for myself. However, now that I've got them, I am very pleased with the change. BTW: The extended wear lenses usually last for about a year and a half. (They say a year, but I usually stretch it for 1.5) They also say to clean them every week or so but I have left them in for as long as a month. Usually, I clean them every two weeks. Anyone who hasn't converted to extended wear (any kind) who can is suffering needlessly. About 2 years ago when I got extended wear, it was such a liberation from daily wear that I went around with a smile for weeks... -MikeP