HORNED UP IN RIGARDS

Last summer in Paris I was invited to a party hosted by the cool peeps at Stylezeitgeist, Nico Uytterhaegen and Rigards. At the party eyewear label Rigards had an installation showcasing its detailed artisanal manufacturing procedure. One of its owners, Ti Kwa, was gracious enough to personally answer all the intriguing questions I had for the relatively new but well-received conceptual eyewear label based in Hong Kong and stocked at some of the most exclusive boutiques around the world such as L'Eclaireur in Paris, Ink in Hong Kong, Ssense in Montreal, Club 21 in Bangkok, Antonioli in Milan and Anchoret in Beijing among others. Coined from the French word "regard"which literally translates to look or glance, one-of-a-kind looking natural horn frames from Rigards undeniably let you stand out from the sea of mainstream sunnies out there. Its cool hand sign logo printed discreetly on the sides of each handcrafted frame explicitly signifies the creative union of eyewear and horn. And for exclusivity's sake, each pair of Rigards is individually numbered. Rest assured you won't be bumping to a flock of thousands wearing the same pair of spectacles. At the end of my tete-a-tete with Ti Kwa, I was convinced to get my hands on these works of art. Frankly, I couldn't decide which ones to get since I absolutely adored everything I tried on at their well-curated showroom. Thank goodness Ti Kwa intervened and suggested a few pairs that would work well with my darkstyle aesthetic and Asian bone structure. I eventually narrowed down my choices to two functional frames: one indoor and one outdoor. Ti Kwa offered to replace the lenses with prescription ones so I don't have to put contacts while wearing them. At the moment, I am completely obsessed with both frames. I love the idea of wearable art. And Rigards effortlessly exemplifies this. No wonder more and more eyewear afficionados like me are falling under Rigards' spell.

Top - Boris Bidjan Saberi tank / Accessories - Rigards horn frames and Rolex GMT-Master
All photos by Juan Lorenzo Abiba
For more info check out Rigards!