Eyeballs Eyewear in Paddington is a Sydney stockist of Persol sunglasses and glasses, and we hold the classic shapes — the 649, the folding 714 and the optical range — in store. Try them on at 342 Oxford Street, about ten minutes from the Sydney CBD, open seven days.
Turin, 1917, and why the temples give
Persol has been made in Italy since 1917, when Giuseppe Ratti began making protective glasses in Turin for pilots and racing drivers. The name is a contraction of per il sole — for the sun. It is one of very few heritage names where the heritage is genuinely in the product rather than in the advertising, because the two things that made it in the 1930s are still the two things you buy it for.
The first is the Meflecto system: a set of flexible cylinders set inside the temple so the arms give against the head instead of gripping it. It sounds like a detail and it is the reason people who own one Persol end up owning three — the frame stops registering after twenty minutes, which is not true of a rigid temple. The principle has barely changed in eighty years.
The second is the Supreme Arrow, the small metal arrow at the hinge. It looks like a badge and it is not; it is the structural link between the front and the temple, and on the folding models it is what makes the fold repeatable rather than a party trick. The sun lenses are crystal — real mineral glass — which is heavier than plastic and clearer, and scratches far less readily.
The models people ask for
The 649 is the one that started it: designed in the 1950s for Turin's tram drivers, who needed something wide enough to keep grit out and light enough to wear all shift. It is still the shape that defines the house, and it works on far more faces than its reputation suggests.
The 714 is the 649 that folds — the first folding sunglass of its kind, hinged at the bridge and at the temples so it collapses into a jacket pocket. The 714SM is the Steve McQueen edition, a factual association rather than a marketing one: he wore the model, and the reissue carries his name with the folding construction intact.
Beyond the icons the optical range is broader and better than people expect, and the special series are worth asking about — the Typewriter Edition, with its keyboard-inspired detailing, the Calligrapher Edition, and the Galleria '900 line drawn from the archive.
What we hold in Paddington
We hold the classic shapes in the standard colourways plus a rotating selection of the limited runs:
- The 649 in its usual sizes
- The folding 714, and the 714SM when it is available
- The optical collection, acetate and metal
- Crystal, polarised and gradient lens options
- Havana, black and the limited colourways as released
Every Persol here can be fitted with your prescription, sunglasses included, and lenses are edged in store rather than sent away.
Fit, sizes and who it suits
Persol is the frame we reach for when someone says they cannot wear sunglasses for long. The Meflecto temple is the reason, and it makes the house unusually good for narrow heads, for people who wear a frame all day, and for anyone who has had a pair leave marks behind the ears.
Sizing is the decision that matters. The 649 and 714 come in more than one eye size and the difference between them is the difference between a period piece and an everyday frame — the smaller sizes read modern and neat, the larger ones read closer to the original. Havana suits warm colouring and softens a strong face; black is sharper and does more work on a fair complexion. Come in and put both sizes on side by side. It takes two minutes and settles the question, and we will adjust the pair you choose before you leave.
