tl;dr Fantastic service, worked with me on tight timeframe for my visit from Los Angeles to get incredible glasses.
Years ago I bought a pair of Mondelliani frames at the Society of the Spectacle, a cute boutique in the Eagle Rock neighborhood of L.A. They held up amazingly well and subsequent frames fell apart after a few years. When I was planning my trip to Rome I decided to upgrade my eyewear and also look into refurbishing my original frames at the source.
I contacted the store ahead of time and had a video consultation with Sergio, who very patiently assisted me with setting up the parameters. He was extremely knowledgeable and made some great recommendations about what lenses to get. He suggested Transitions-style lenses for my existing pair and, since I wanted both a new pair of glasses and prescription sunglasses, two more sets of lenses to be prepped before my arrival.
When I got to Rome I stopped by the lovely boutique and met Sergio and the manager (owner?) in person. Sergio very patiently and expertly auditioned frames for my new glasses and sunglasses and took a craftsman-like approach to finding the best ones aesthetically. We narrowed in on the finalists and they went to work preparing the glasses for me. I was in Rome for about 5 days and had to extend one day; the glasses were magically ready in-person before I left! After a fitting session I took them and am now wearing them daily.
I chatted with the manager (owner?) about the shop in Eagle Rock and she was really surprised I came all the way to Rome to get my glasses. I really enjoyed the experience and it was delightful to come away with souvenirs from my trip that I can use every day and make my quality of life much nicer. Plus, I can be pretentious and say "Oh, I got them when I was in Rome..."
Also, I must say that the blue light filter that was added has been really useful. It is unobtrusive but I definitely notice the difference looking at computer monitors - when I take them off I can see the increased glare from the displays.
I must again emphasize the quality of these glasses - I have had numerous mass-market frames (Ray-Ban, Nautica, etc) and they all tend to get worn and/or fall apart. I am much more confident in the longevity of these Mondelliani frames, even though they are plastic!
Lastly, I get compliments ALL THE TIME about all the frames. I always did for the old frames and the new ones are constantly noticed. They are stylish and just different enough from the Luxottica hegemony options that, even in style-conscious L.A., they get noticed. read more