Irma 158

This fine portrait of smiling Irma in vintage cat eye glasses by Whitney concludes her come back as "Lady behind crystal veil".

Dear Irma, thank you so much for saving a day that seemed lost when the model did not show up! It was great to do another photo shoot with you. Much appreciated!

Irma 157

Glasses: Whitney, late 1950's
[L: -6.75; c-0.75 h / R: -7.00; c-1.00 h]
These glasses were supplied by Stephan from Bavaria and used during many photo shoots (Leonne, Connie, Christien, Claudia Allegonda, Lucy and Douce). I clearly remember seeing ladies wearing these glasses in the Amsterdam of my childhood.

Irma 156

Irma posing in solid, strong glasses made by Lozza in the mid 1970's. This pair was acquired at the famous "Waterlooplein" flea market in Amsterdam during the late 1980's. Many models posed in these glasses (Conny, Astrid, Farishta, Nel, Petra and Marleen) for my first weblog and it's nice to give the glasses another try. The frame design is ideal as high index lenses did not exist in the 1970's.

Irma 155

Glasses: Lozza (Tonura), mid 1970's

[L: -11.50 / R: -8.00; c-2.50 o]

Irma 154

Fitted with extra thin lenses (1.67), these tiny glasses are subtle and refined. They were featured in my photo shoots with Marieke, Leonne, Claudine and Claudia Allegonda. Here Irma joins their ranks. One of my favorite portraits from this brief but much appreciated photo shoot!

Irma 153

Glasses: Zenni 3818 / 8818
[L: -11.00 / R: -12.00]

Irma 152

Glasses: Zenni 2350
[L: -13.00 / R: -12.00]
Previously featured in my photo shoots with Petra and Jolien.

Irma 151

Glasses: nameless, probably 1970's
[L: -8.50 / R: -9.50]
Power glasses supplied by Martin from Köln, Germany and previously featured in my photo shoots with Marieke, Léonne and Lucy.

Irma 150

Glasses: called "Mandy", 1980's
[L: -9.00 / R: -8.00; c-0.50 v]
These glasses were supplied by Stephan from Bavaria, one of my favorite photographers.

Irma 149

Even during a brief, improvised photo shoot it was tempting to try some of the stronger glasses in my collection. This pair by Zenni, powerful both in Rx and frame, was not available during my first photo shoot with Irma. The glasses were featured in many of my subsequent photo shoots. Gita, Conny, Hiska, Lettie, Nanda (first weblog), Karen and Christien were keen to give them a try although none of them chose these all too present glasses for use in everyday life.

Irma 148

Glasses: Zenni 4436
[L=R: -8.00]

Irma 147

Another capture of Irma in one of Viennaline's best sellers of all time. I have precious memories of several Amsterdam bombshells wearing these glasses during the early to mid 1970's, usually in low minus prescriptions. The frame was not designed to be fitted with strong minus lenses.

Irma 146

Glasses: Viennaline, early / mid 1970's
[L=R: +1.50 / var add 1.00]
These glasses by Viennaline were highly popular among young blondes during my student days in Amsterdam. The first owner of this pair must have been a lady in her forties who went for her first progressive glasses. The lens type was invented in the late 1960's and gained immense popularity in Holland during the 1970's when the price became reasonable, only slightly over the price of bifocal lenses. The photo shoot with Irma started outside but the merciless spring sunlight forced us to look for an indoor locations where the flashlight of my camera created new problems. Anyway, it was good to be back, albeit briefly....

Irma 145

Glasses: stamped "Polarized", possibly 1970's
[L: +1.00; c+0.25 o / R: -1.00; c-1.00 o]
Another pair that has been in my collection for several decades but somehow escaped my attention when selecting glasses for previous photo shoots. The color of the frame was a huge favorite among blondes during the mid 1960's. Irma commented on the contrasting effects of both lenses, saying that the right lens gave her better eyesight.

Irma 144

Glasses: Silhouette 1236, late 1980's
[L: -0.50 / R: 0; c-1.25 h]
Irma posing in one of many Silhouette glasses not used in my previous photo shoots. The glasses were bought at a flea market during the mid 1990's. A case of not seeing the wood through the trees....

Irma 143

Glasses: Givenchy
[L: -0.75 / R: -0.50]
These beautiful cat eye glasses were kindly sent to me by a German lady. Claudia has only a slight degree of myopia but a great taste for glasses. The glasses were previously shown in my photo shoots with Esther and Léonne.

Irma 142

Glasses: Viennaline (Picasso), 1990's, from Germany
[L: -2.25 / R: -3.00]
Previously featured in my photo shoots with Astrid, Gita and Nanda (first weblog).

Irma 141

Irma posing in bifocals by Opti Studio called "Anne". These beautiful glasses were previously used during my photo shoots with Rachel (first weblog) and Léonne ("Eva" series). My guess is that the glasses were made some 20 years ago.

Irma 140

Glasses: Optic Studio (Anne)
[L: +1.25; c-2.50 h / R: -0.25; c-1.75 h / bif add 2.25]

Irma 139

"E" stands for "Exclusiv", a line of designer glasses started by the Rodenstock company during the 1970's. Here Irma poses in a pair that was quite popular in the early 1980's. My collection hosts four pairs with the E 524 frame. This is the only pair with a very mild prescription. It was acquired during a day trip to Germany. By coincidence this day trip also yielded another Rodenstock E 524 with extremely strong lenses (-15.50 / -17.50). This pair can be seen in my photo shoots with Margriet, Claudine, Léonne and Melissa.

Irma 138

Glasses: Rodenstock E 524
[L=R: -1.00]

Irma 137

Photo shoots may seem quite serious events but there is always time for fun and relaxation. Irma and I get along great and it was my pleasure to see her in front of the camera again.

Irma 136

If my memory serves me correctly, these glasses were in a box presented to me by a friendly glasses collector from the London area.

Irma 135

Glasses: Viennaline, mid 1980's

[L: -0.25; c-0.25 v / R: -0.50; c-0.25 v]

Irma 134

Glasses: nameless cat eye from the late 1950's.
[L: 0 / R: +1.00]
These well worn cat eye glasses were not used during any of my previous photo shoots. Irma was happy to give them a try. She likes cat eye glasses and even used them to great effect during the catwalk at the opening of my first exhibition (see You Tube Lentilux). The lenses have no anti-reflective coating but it's nice to have the glasses shown anyway.

Irma 133

Glasses: Rodenstock J 104, made in the 1980's.
[L: -1.25 / R: -1.75 / var add 2.50]
The "J" stands for "Junge Linie" or in English "Young Look".

Irma 132

Glasses: nameless, from Germany, made in the 1990's

[L: -2.25 / R: -0.75; c-1.00 v]

These glasses were previously used during my photo shoots with Carla, Margriet and Melissa. The frame is quite suitable for blondes.

Irma 131

Glasses: Revue
[L: -2.50; c-0.25 o / R: -2.25; c-0.50 0]

In October I had a very bad concussion which is healing quite slowly. Yesterday my first photo shoot in several months took place, only different than I imagined. The freelance model could not make it due to a sudden illness but Irma said that she had a spare hour. Irma kindly agreed to do a brief photo shoot with the glasses that I had brought along for the photo shoot. Followers of my previous weblog "Ladies behind crystal veil" will recognize Irma as she was the very first model who appeared on that weblog in the autumn of 2009.

Irma 130

Glasses: Neostyle, circa 1970
[L: -2.75 / R: -2.25]

Irma 129

Photo shoot: March 28th, 2012

Glasses: Silhouette 3087, mid 1990's

[L=R: 0 / var add 2.25]

Rx model: -0.50