Focus on Lenses – Add a New Dimension to Your Costume

This article isn't really for experienced cosplayers (who are well-acquainted with colored lenses and have their favorite brands), but rather for those who have no experience with these little helpers or are simply afraid of them. The internet is full of gross photos, horror stories about a student who almost lost her sight because of colored lenses, or ophthalmologists sharpening their bayonets to go to battle against Wichterle's amazing invention.

Most of those stories are true, I won't deny that. But if you read carefully, you'll find that, for example, that unfortunate student wore lenses even though they were literally cutting into her eyes. Henry Cavill also had his share of trouble while filming The Witcher. Once, he had an issue with his eyes. They were irritating him, he had a headache, and his vision was blurry. Not knowing what lenses could cause, he thought it was just fatigue from the demanding shoot. Fortunately, a foresighted crew member (I don't remember her exact position) immediately recommended that Henry take them out. And voila! Problem solved.

Dust can stick to a lens, scratching it, and then you have a problem. A lens can crack and scrape the cornea until it causes serious damage. But you know what? It all sounds terrifying, but a simple trick is enough – listen to your eyes!

Let's look at the most common questions and topics related to lenses. We'll talk about how to care for them and what to avoid.

How do contact lenses work and who are they for?

Contact lens is a thin, transparent, and flexible medical device worn directly on the surface of the eye to (in most cases) correct various vision defects and enable better sight. Lenses work by changing the direction of light rays entering the eye so that the image focuses exactly on the retina. In this way, they compensate for various vision defects. Contact lenses are designed to fit as precisely as possible on the surface of the eye and be comfortable for the wearer. There are various types of contact lenses, including soft and hard (glass) variants, with soft lenses generally considered more comfortable and suitable for most people.

Contact lenses are intended for anyone whose health limitations do not forbid wearing them (if you don't know, ask your doctor/ophthalmologist). They are produced in variants from non-prescription – i.e., without correction (0.00), to variants for users with myopia (-0.50, -1.50, -2.00, etc.), hyperopia (+0.50, +1.50, +2.00, etc.), or perhaps astigmatism.

The primary function of lenses is therefore vision correction, but appetite grows with eating, and after a while, even those without vision defects longed for cosmetic transformations. Who wouldn't want to change their look in a moment, right? 😉 That's why tinted contact lenses appeared on the market. And once you can change your natural color, you can just as well change it to something completely abnormal, like a checkerboard pattern.

Once you can print something on the surface of a lens, there are no limits to your imagination.

Always choose lenses with regard to their function (vision correction/no correction) and what you expect from them (size, color). If you wear glasses, it is said that the lens should have 0.5 fewer diopters than your glasses. But! I've been wearing lenses for about 18 years, and I only followed this rule at the beginning. Now my diopters are the same, and I don't feel the difference.

If you are not sure, I recommend trying lenses at your ophthalmologist or in opticians that offer measurement and consulting services. This also applies if you want to ask for more information and learn how to put lenses in correctly. Optometrists in shopping centers or stores will advise you. After all, when I was starting with lenses, my first steps led exactly there.

How to insert a lens?

There is probably no completely universal answer to this. Everyone has to find a way that suits them. For example, I insert the lens with my index finger. I'm right-handed, so I hold the upper and lower eyelid with my left index and middle finger, and with my right index finger, I place the lens just below the iris. Once it suctions on, I pull it upwards onto the iris. Then just blink a few times, and the lens will settle. Sometimes it doesn't settle, so I take it out, wash it again in the palm of my hand with solution, and repeat the process.

I would recommend not watching what you are doing with the lens and how your finger is approaching the eye, but focusing on a point in front of you and "peripherally" perceiving where you are placing the lens. You will feel it. The eye is an amazing and very sensitive organ. It is also good to slightly tilt your head while still looking straight ahead. The way I insert lenses is very similar to the method in this video. The way I take the lens out is completely identical (as in the video).

Another way to insert a lens is directly (you poke the index finger with the lens into the eye at almost a 90° angle), but honestly, this never worked for me. The lens doesn't always stick, and it forces me to blink more.

I often hear that people have trouble getting the lens into their eye because as soon as they approach the eye with their finger, they start blinking. For that, I can only recommend **training**. When you have a free moment and clean hands (maybe before going to sleep). Look at yourself in the mirror and move your finger closer and further from your eye. Don't look at your finger, but at your reflection in front of you, and don't touch your iris directly! It is extremely sensitive! But touch the white of the eye, somewhere on the side, just with the tip of your finger. Repeat this as often as necessary until this touch stops scaring you. But be careful and, most importantly, have clean hands.

Hygiene first!

Never, but NEVER, insert lenses without having properly washed your hands beforehand. Any soap and well-washed hands are enough. You can either let the water drip off your hands or dry them with a lint-free towel.

Also, only remove lenses from your eyes with clean hands.

If it happens that the lens gets dirty in some way (you usually perceive this as a persistent spot in your field of vision), take the lens out with clean hands and wash it using the designated solution. If you are out somewhere and don't have solution with you, ordinary tap water can be used, but take it as a last resort (!), and not a completely suitable method. After you get to the solution, let the lens rest in a solution bath for at least an hour.

As for inserting lenses and makeup, we always insert the lens first and then apply makeup. If we did it the other way around, we risk getting particles of makeup or mascara, etc., under the lens, and an infection could start.

Imagine it like this: the lens is a breathable lid on your cornea. If dirt gets under it, it stays wedged between the lens and the cornea. And nobody wants that. It sounds scary, but hygiene is number one with lenses. If you are cautious and clean, you minimize the risks.

How long can I wear lenses?

There are several types of lenses – daily, monthly, yearly, but also continuous, etc. Here at imago, we currently sell two types – daily and yearly.

In practice, this means you insert daily lenses once and then throw them away. You could also say they are disposable. That's why their price is generally lower.

You can wear yearly lenses repeatedly for up to one year. If you store them correctly (in a dark place, in clean cases, and in solution that you replace completely once a month), they will bring you joy for up to 365 days. Of course, if they start itching, cutting, or your vision gets blurry after re-inserting them, say after half a year, throw them away. It's better to throw a few hundred crowns in the trash than to spend two months on sick leave.

Neither of these lenses are continuous, or extended-wear lenses. So you must take them out at night and store them in a clean case with solution.

What happens if you party all night and fall asleep in your lenses? Well, your eyes won't fall out, but lenses without extended wear have lower air permeability and a lower water content. Consequently, they can cause swelling, headaches, nausea, or a condition resembling dry eye symptoms.

Debunking myths about lenses

Myth: A lens will just fall out of the eye

Nonsense. A lens won't "just" fall out. There is always a reason for it to fall out. Personal experience – it can happen that if you laugh intensely and squeeze your eyelids together hard, the lens might roll up. It can! It doesn't happen commonly.

Myth: I'll wake up and the lens is gone. It detached and got lost behind the eyeball

Again, this is somewhere on the border between nonsense and "a little bit true". Personally, I have had this experience, but only once in all those 18 years. And it definitely didn't happen by itself. I don't remember exactly how the lens moved under my upper eyelid, but there was something mechanical involved. I think I rubbed my eye a lot. It's been a really long time. Fortunately, I managed to catch the edge of the lens with a cotton swab and put it back in place.

Myth: A contact lens will stick to the eye and can't be removed

Removing a lens from a dry eye can be a bit of a struggle. But a few drops of solution, Ocutein, or another dry eye product are enough, and the lens will come out of the eye. It mainly requires calm, don't panic. Have clean hands, and most importantly, don't hurt yourself. It will work.

Myth: Contact lenses cause infections

If you behave irresponsibly, neglect hygiene, and don't read the package leaflet, the chance is high.

Summary, or good advice is worth its weight in gold

• Always insert and remove lenses with clean hands
• Pack a case and lens solution for trips. I also recommend eye drops as a backup (make sure at the pharmacy that they are suitable for lens wearers – I prefer Ocutein Sensitive Plus)
• If the lens burns, scratches, you have a feeling of sand (or hair) in your eyes while wearing them, you have blurred vision, and none of these symptoms subside within 5 minutes, take them out! Don't risk it unnecessarily!
• Take non-continuous lenses out of your eyes at night. Store them in a clean case filled with lens solution. Close tightly
• There are letters L and R on the lens case (L – left / R – right). Place the lens from the left eye into the L case. Do the same for the right. Do not swap the lens from the left to the right eye, etc.
• If you wear prescription lenses and feel nauseous while wearing them, make sure you have the correct diopters (visit an optometrist or ophthalmologist)
• Never squeeze a half-folded lens with force between two fingers. It can crack, and at that moment, it is unwearable
• When inserting the lens, make sure it is not inside out
• Always buy only lenses that meet European standards and have all the necessary certificates. You can easily achieve this by shopping on the European market. If you go shopping in Asia, you might save a few crowns, but (without certificates - CE Certificate) you risk potential serious health problems.

author Eva Lassler