The Future May or May Not Be So Bright...
But we DO still need shades 😎
Hello, Dames Nation!
After a couple of years off, I once again felt called to do one of my traditional round-ups of fun sunglasses for $25-or-less. They are actually $20-or-less, with the exception of one pair. Below, you will find my 40 recommended pairs split into four categories: Classic Glamour, Retro Masc, Just Plain Fun, and Brat Summer. I hope that you’ll find a pair or two or SIX that scratch your summer fun itch.
Category: Classic Glamour
Do you want to feel like a movie star from any time between 1950-1990? Then this is the category to browse.
This pair from ZeroUV were my go-to sunglasses for years and they’re the best cheap dupe I’ve found for those sported by Miss Holly Golightly herself in the above gif.
If you want a similar pair, but with an slightly edgier, chunkier frame— a bit more modern— this pair could suit.
Conversely, if you want this vibe, but with thinner, more sinuous frames— a glorious 70s classic glam— you should check out this pair. I particularly like them in the lipstick red colorway.
If you want to go even MORE 70s, like… straight-up Match Game 70s, these oversized rectangular guys could be for you.
OR what if you want a Golightly, but star-spangled to high heaven like it’s headed to the rodeo? ZeroUV, once again, has you covered.
If you’re more in the mood for a classic cat eye shape, ZeroUV has exactly that, and in a couple unexpected colors like teal blue and deep rose.
For another highly classic cat eye, check out these frames from Sojos, which also come in some fun, unexpected colors like a translucent emerald green and a black-tortoise ombré. I like these frames enough that I’ve purchased them twice— they are the best dupe I’ve found for J. Crew’s Cabana sunglasses, whose frame shape I adore, but whose $40+ price tag and slightly loose arms I cannot justify.
If you want a chunkier, more modern cat eye, I endorse these guys from Sojos. These in milky brown are my go-to shades right now, but I have my eye on both the mustard green and pink frames as well.
I am also tempted by these chunky cat eyes, particularly in the peachy cream pink.
If you want cat eye sunglasses, but make them for like.. a 1980s supervillain? These guys, particularly in the dark green and dark purple colorways, could be very fun.
And, for right on the border between pure fun and classic glamour, ZeroUV has heart-shaped sunglasses with a slightly upwards, cat-eye-esque tilt.
If you like the idea of a Golightly, but you want something slightly less oversized, Sojos has a number of “small round” styles that could be your jam. I like these ones for their adorable array of ice-cream hues like pink, lavender, and pistachio, but the translucent blue and green options here are also excellent— not to mention the array of more standard browns and blacks.
Category: Retro Masc
Do you want something classic, but not necessarily high femme? This selection of frames might be for you!
Here’s the closest thing Sojos has to the classic Wayfarer shape— a.k.a. what Tom Cruise wears in risky business. They’re iconic for a reason!
For a smaller, squarer option, these Sojos guys might be your friends.
For a smaller, ROUNDER option, these guys from Sungait are Wirecutter-approved and quite cute. You can even get a two-pair pack for just $24.
Or if you want a pair of classic aviator shades, these ones from Sojos come in a nice array of browns and blacks.
And if you want to go hard at both retro AND masc, ZeroUV has some mirrored, horn-rim glasses with your name on ‘em.
Category: Just Plain Fun
Do you want a pair of sunglasses in a fun color or shape, like one you could have received in a party favor bag as a child? Or that you could imagine a girl in a bubble gum ad sporting? Then this is the section for you!
First up, we have the same practical “small round” shape we saw earlier from Sojos, but in an array of bright, fruity, mirrored hues! These are the only sunglasses over $20 in this guide, and they apparently have some kind of special treatment that makes them particularly good at reducing glare / repelling water / resisting oil? But I can’t vouch for whether or not that’s snake oil. I’m only including them because I really love the color options.
Golightly-esque oversized sunglasses in lemon yellow with bright blue lenses? Or mint green with mirrored turquoise lenses? Or translucent hot pink with mirrored cobalt lenses? Or pearly smokey grey frames with mirrored sunset magenta lenses? Your options are nearly limitless.
I’m also a sucker for these oversized glasses with lavender lenses and multi-color translucent frames.
Hard to go wrong with a pair of traditional heart-shaped sunnies, particularly when they come in unusual frame colors like turquoise blue and baby pink.
But maybe you want your heart-shaped sunnies to have opalescent mirrored lenses?
Or a glamorous cat-eye tilt, but with blue-green ombre lenses?
Or maybe you want them made out of translucent plastic, an option that is much more flattering than you would expect. Plus, for just $8, you can get a set of such sunnies in every color of the rainbow.
Or how about translucent heart-shaped sunglasses with glitter? I wouldn’t wear these to drive, but for drinking a frozen cocktail through a crazy straw? They can’t be beat.
Maybe you want a smallish cat eye, but with magenta mirrored lenses that look like a literal sunset?
Category: Brat Summer
And finally, are cheap sunglasses your place to play around with trends and embrace what The Youth are championing at this particular moment? If yes, I salute you, and I hope you find teeny oval sunglasses that look like they could have been worn to The Matrix’s premiere cute, because that is what the kids these days love. May they help you blend in while waiting in line to go to a Charli XCX theme night at the club:
First up in this category, we have sunglasses called, literally, “clout goggles”— oval plastic frames just like the ones Kurt Cobain was famous for wearing, but in an array of different colors. I am pretty sure I tried these on optimistically and then realized they looked dumb on me at least 4 times a summer from 1996-2002. But maybe this year will be different!
What about those sunglasses, but in an even smaller, more narrow oval? Or with translucent plastic frames in a variety of pastel hues?
Or narrow, oval lenses with metal, rhinestone-embedded frames?
Maybe you want an oversized pair with rounded rectangular plastic frames that’s just a little more masc? They’d pair perfectly with a festival-ready tie-dye bucket hat.
For what I feel is an approachable Brat Summer look, I like these angular oval sunglasses with matching fruity-colored translucent lenses and frames.
But if you want to go HARD for Gen Z’s approval, these bitsy triangular sunglasses are the thing to pair with your space buns.
Unless you wanted to go the frameless route in with fruit-colored lenses in either rectangular or hexagonal oval shapes.
If even one person becomes a paid subscriber after reading this MAGNUM OPUS of sunglass fun, these are the sunnies I am allowed to buy myself: the sinewy 1970s Golightlys in the aforementioned lipstick red and the star-spangled Rodeo Clown Golightlys, in “smoke pink.” Be the paid subscriber who justifies this small extravagance!
Please comment below with what you buy, or tag us on Instagram if you want to share pictures!
XOXO, your favorite shady Dame,
Margaret
This is SO important! A Youth once complimented me on my sunglasses at a former coworker's baby shower and I'll be chasing that high for the rest of my life