August 31, 2018

Lens review: ColourVue Crazy Lens Green Dragon

Rawr!

I'm gonna review my first vertical slit lenses and I'm super excited as I've been wanting to try a pair for ages! This kind of lens goes under different names, often with an animal as a reference like cat eyes, lizard eyes or as in this case dragon eyes. It's often the same base design but with different colors and what I'll show you today is the ColourVue Crazy Lens Green Dragon, let's go!




Base curve: 8.6 mm
Diameter: 14.0 mm
Water content: 45%
Life span: 1 year (I recommend 6 months)




You can tell just by looking at them that what we have on hand is a opaque lens with bright color – there's only three colors present and that's green, yellow and black. The main point of this kind of lenses is to provide you with a vertical pupil, slit eyes, typically seen on reptiles and cats. 

I'm gonna answer the question that everyone is probably asking by now do they spin? Yes they do, sadly. It is typical of vertical pupil lenses to spin around (and pretty much all lenses tbh, it's just that it's much more noticeable on this type of lenses) and unless they're weighted by some sort of stabilizator then they will inevitably spin around sooner or later, which means that you'll be poking your eyes a lot during the time and looking in mirrors to make sure that your lenses look like they should. It's a bit of a hassle but the amount of spinning seems to be possible to somewhat control by being mindful of how much you move your eyes around etc – I noticed that because I have strabismus that my other lens spun much more (my weaker eye, in particular because it rolls outward when I'm not focused) and much faster than my better eye, so I experimented with trying to only look straight ahead and not moving my gaze around and it seemed on a quick check to affect how long the lenses stayed in position before starting to move. I might be wrong as this was just a 5-10 minute test but that's some food for thought. 
Also, a fair warning already now that, while I've tried to keep the lenses upright on all photos below, it was impossible to make sure that they were always 100% correctly as sometimes a lens would have shifted by the time I put the camera in position to take the photo.

One lens in.
The yellow color turns more greenish on my eyes and the overall perceived brightness gets very slightly diluted, which is cool in a sense as it gives a slightly more natural flair to the lenses, even though they are pretty much as far from a natural human eye as one could possibly get. xD 
The pupil hole is kept transparent to let you see through easily while the rest of the vertical slit is pitch black, this also means that depending on the light conditions your real eye color might show through a bit in the center because our pupils change size in light and darkness. In poorer lights or during night time you'll most likely see colored corners in your vision or blur.
There's a slight enlargement boost but it's not really all that noticeable since no further attention is drawn to the size, there's no darker rim or such to make the edges stand out. I don't know about you but if I was a dragon I'd rather not have massive cutesy moe eyes, lmao. Dragon eye scleras would of course be a different topic altogether.

Lens photos below!
All photos taken by yours truly during an August afternoon with a semi-cloudy sky. All close-up photos are free from color filters and such and that's so that the colors would be as true to real life as possible.

Natural indoors room light.
Yellow indoors room light.
Flash photo.
Facing window. (shadow side)
Outdoors, back against sun. (facing wall)
Outdoors, facing the sun while being under a harsh shadow.
Outdoors, facing sun.
I noticed nothing wrong with the comfort. They are fine to wear and there's no apparent stinging, scratching, red eyes or whatnot. They feel thin enough to not really be noticeable when worn but, as already mentioned above, beware of colored corners in poorer light conditions. I'd say average wearing time for me is anything around 2-5 hours, which would probably equal about 4-8 hours for someone who does not have ridiculously dry eyes like me. All eyes are different so it's really difficult to give wearing time estimates as comfort is highly subjective and depends on many factors.

I think it's a really fun lens and I'd definitely use them more if I didn't have to constantly worry about if they are positioned correctly while at a con or such as yeah, I get anxious for even the smallest things and derpy eyes would be a part of that list. But if you have no issue with fixing them every now and again then I'd say go for it! I primarily see ColourVue Crazy Lens Green Dragon as a costuming lens for fantasy shootings, live-action roleplay, cosplay and that kind of stuff. You could of course use them for fashion too, assuming you don a style that's... fiery enough, hoho.

Distance photos!



Short summary:

Color: 10/10 
Vibrant, almost poisonous-looking green color. Hard to miss and eye-catching!
Design: 9/10 
Simple two-tone slit pupil lenses that look like advertised. Only minus is that they spin.
Opacity: 9/10
These mask your real eye color completely but aren't 100% exactly as bright when worn.
Enlargement: 3/10 
Smallish, but that's what I want from this kind of lenses.
Comfort: 7/10 
Fine. Nothing major except for colored corners in poorer lights because of natural pupil behavior (dilation). Generally comfortable and pleasant to wear.
Naturalness: 1/10 
Unless dragon eyes are in your books of natural things then no, no no no.

I hope you found this review helpful! Thanks for reading. ^^
Shiro Samurai is out.

August 29, 2018

Lens review: ColourVue Phantasee Lost Galaxy

Hiya fellas!

I'm pretty stoked to bring this lens review to you as these lenses are really awesome! It's not your ordinary cosmetic colored contact lens because these actually, much like their name implies, makes your peepers look like you are from a different galaxy – it's the ColourVue Phantasee Lost Galaxy!




Base curve: 8.6 mm
Diameter: 14.0 mm
Water content: 45% 
Life span: 1 year (I recommend 6 months)



When I bought these I had no idea I'd be so enchanted by these lenses, haha. It's a really cool futuristic-ish design with red patterns swirling near the center, accompanied by a light burst effect that's white at the center and gradually turns yellow. My immediate thought screams alien eyes but these could be so much more. It's a really funky design with a color that pops from miles ahead and it's sure to turn eyes your way.

One lens in.
Holy shit, the color! I find it really awesome as it's so bright and the rad level is off the charts! This is the kind of lens that when you put them on it comes with a free attitude boost, lmao. I don't even know what to say, it's so fabulous it makes me speechless – it's one hell of a costuming lens, that's for sure.
As with pretty much all crazy lenses these don't come with any notable size enlargement, which is a good thing in my opinion as I don't want my fantasy eyes to look all moe moe kyun kyun. 

Lens photos below!
All photos taken by me during an August afternoon with a semi-cloudy sky. All close-up photos are free from color filters and such and that's so that the colors would be as true to real life as possible.

Natural room light.
Yellow room light.
Bathroom light.
Flash photo.
Unlit corridor.
Facing window. (backyard, shadow side)
Outdoors, back against sun.
Outdoors, facing sun while under a harsh shadow.
Outdoors, facing sun.
Comfort is all fine and dandy. No major issues and easy to wear. My vision might be slightly obstructed by the corners in poorer lights but that's to be expected with opaque lenses that sport a small-ish pupil hole, crazy lenses in particular. I don't feel them in my eyes and they are thin and pleasant, no stinginess or shit like that. I'd estimate wearing time around 3-5 hours on my monster dry eyes, which is better than average and would probably equal about 5-8 hours for someone with "normal" eyes.
If there's any drawback worth mentioning it's that these are incredibly thin and thus hard to handle as the lenses kept folding themselves up when I tried to put them on. They don't keep their shape well so it's a battle to get them into your eyes as they tend to just flop on the finger, lol.

This is one of the coolest and most badass crazy lenses I've tried to this point and I'm glad I splurged on these. The Lost Galaxy lenses would be an amazing addition to sci-fi and any kind of alien race costumes and other fantasy beings like werewolves, wizards, sirens, dragons and anything else that you can think of. There's a lot of potential to be had with such a funky and extraordinary lens like this! I could also see these used for cosplaying characters with yellow-orange eyes and even for Star Wars Sith lords in a pinch. Heck, there's so many choices and that's without counting all the j-fashion and alternative fashion styles you could spice up with bright space peepers. The opportunities are endless as long as you have imagination! Any kind of visual, bold or vibrant style could benefit from a pair of Lost Galaxy lenses so yeah, instead of me bumbling on about these I'd recommend you go get yourself a pair of your own!

Distance photo!


Short summary:

Color: 10/10 
Hell yes, epic galaxy themed yellow-red lens that looks a bit orange from a distance.
Design: 10/10 
The design level reaches the top grades of coolness. This is a fascinating space inspired lens!
Opacity: 10/10
Perfect coverage which also retains the brightness of even the palest colors.
Enlargement: 2/10 
Really small, which is the best for crazy lenses in my opinion.
Comfort: 7/10 
Extremely thin (floppy to handle though) and generally pleasant. Estimated wearing time about 3-5 hours on super dry eyes.
Naturalness: 1/10 
Space being eyes ain't natural, yo.

Thanks for reading, whoever you are. I hope you found this review interesting!

August 27, 2018

Lens review: ColourVue Phantasee White Tornado

Yo peeps!

I still have some more ColourVue lenses to review so hang on and enjoy the ride while it lasts, it's not so often that I've reviewed crazy lenses in the past. ;) Today it's a day for the ColourVue Phantasee White Tornado which, unlike their name, is actually primarily a red lens. I can't help but think that White Tornado sounds like the name of a Digimon attack or something. xD




Base curve: 8.6 mm
Diameter: 14.0 mm
Water content: 45%
Life span: 1 year (I recommend 6 months)




I bought these out of curiosity and because I thought a red and white lens seemed really cool. It's a jagged swirly design with pretty big spikes and it looks quite wild! You'll also notice that the center of the lens is this kind of red-tinted white and the white gets purer the farther towards the edges it gets – the red is the dominant color so when worn the lenses appear more red than white, especially from a distance.

One lens in.
My eyes are a light blue-gray (gray-blue?) and there's no doubt about the color coverage being what you'd expect from a crazy type lens. As you can see the white is not really all that noticeable as the red is kinda deep in shade and takes all attention. The effect is pretty rad as these lenses are pretty unique in their design and color choice; my thoughts go to zombie eyes or any kind of possessed or otherwordly being! It's not a big lens as there's only a really minor size boost and thus it's suitable for most wearers, regardless of eye shape.
By the way, it's super easy to tell the right side apart from the wrong side as the wrong side is red.

Lens photos below!
All photos taken by yours truly during an August afternoon with a semi-cloudy sky. All close-up photos are free from color filters and such and that's so that the colors would be as true to real life as possible.


Natural room light indoors.
Yellow room light indoors.
Bathroom light.
Flash photo.
Unlit corridor.
Facing window. (shadow side)
Outdoors, back against sun.
Outdoors, facing sun while being under a harsh shadow.
Outdoors, facing sun.
Comfort felt okay. There might be some slight blur in the corners of my vision (especially in poorer lights) but nothing annoying. I had no trouble inserting these lenses and they don't feel scratchy or anything of the sort. I don't feel them much while wearing them and I am overall happy with them as comfort is a touchy thing for me as I have ridiculously dry and sensitive eyes. My personal estimate is that wearing time for me is about 2-5 hours, which is decent in my standards. Anything past 3 hours is good for me, which would probably equal the double for someone with "normal" eyes. 

All in all it's a fun and funky lens. I think it's best suited for horror, evil being and sci-fi costumes  and for those who have a knack for red lenses in particular. It might work for some alternative fashion too but not for every style, you'd want to go for the bolder and more vibrant looks I think. One thing to note though is that the farther away the viewer is the more these lenses will look like more regular red lenses – the white parts will blend into your eyes.

Distance photo, as per usual.


Short summary:

Color: 9/10 
Bold medium dark crazy type lens in white and red. The color is definitely there.
Design: 8/10 
Funky design with big rotating spikes. Red is the primary color while the white is not a pure white and mostly serves as a backdrop to enhance the red's effect.
Opacity: 9/10
Really opaque, as is to be expected from this kind of lens.
Enlargement: 2/10 
Really small, there's only a teeny tiny enlargement.
Comfort: 7/10 
Decent. No noticeable issues and wearing time on the better end of average, on dry eyes.
Naturalness: 1/10 
Assuming you're human and not some dark being then no.

Thanks for reading my blog, it's much appreciated. ^.^

August 25, 2018

Lens review: ColourVue Crazy Lens Kronos

Hello readers!

I have an extraordinary contact lens review in store for today and I mean it, I think these lenses are among the coolest I've ever had! 8D I'm not lying when I say that these literally makes my eyes look silver and it's AH-MAZING. Yes, I'm talking about the ColourVue Crazy Lens Kronos and today you'll see just how fascinating these lenses are! Let's go!




Base curve: 8.6 mm
Diameter: 14.0 mm
Water content: 45% 
Life span: 1 year (I recommend 6 months)








I bought these super long ago and I remember being both super excited and sceptical about them. I was indeed hoping for them to be silvery but I had my doubts in how exactly it would work; I couldn't find a single review for them either so I ultimately decided on a "screw it let's do it" moment and decided to take the opportunity. Glad I did as these are really something!

I had a hard time trying to get these lenses to photograph properly as in real life they look a bit different and the glittery/reflecting effect is much easier to see. This review will have a bit more photos than usual because of that and because of their specialty.

This is what I initially assumed was the right side...
... and this the wrong side, because of the silver stained rim.
Comparison of both sides together.
I need to mention that I had trouble trying to figure out which side of the lens was the right side, hence the photos above. The print is identical on both sides, except for the black rim which is solid on one side and has silvery edges on the other side. My prior experience immediately told me that the solid rim side would be the right side but as I peered closer I noticed that it had the "wrong side curvature" when I held it up, slight but it was there. I was confused as to me the side with the black rim looked obviously like the right side and so I had to proof myself multiple times to make sure that I was wrong, lol. The difference in curve is small but it does seem like the "wrong side" in fact is the right side. Funny. I might still be wrong but I'm like 80% sure this is the case as I've been holding up both lenses next to each other and comparing their shape for like 15 minutes... 

One lens in.
These don't deliver much in terms of enlargement but holy fuck the color!! IT IS UNDOUBTEDLY SILVER. I was kinda fearing that it would just make my eyes look like my real eye color does but just glittery as hell (which would have been cool in its own way) but what I got was over and beyond my expectations! These lenses, my friend, are super bright and bold and so reflective that your eyes quite literally light up even in the shittiest light conditions. They seem to reflect light and they do so with such efficiency that it's crazy! Like holy shit I just can't believe how awesome these are!

I am thinking that the lightness of my natural eye color might add to how pale these look on me, but I'm confident in that these would do their job even on darker eyes as the glitter seems really strong. I'm not sure if I should call it glittery but it does look sparkly when the light hits it (most notable on the vial photos) and, while worn, they suddenly look a lot more covering than what one might expect as they do, in fact, look quite transparent in their vials. It's like as soon as you put them on you're floored by the intensity because you didn't expect that kind of vibrancy!

The comfort is generally fine, I experienced a couple dry bouts and my vision is slightly blurred at the corners. I don't really feel them much while wearing so that's always a plus. The first signs of dryness showed up around the 2,5 hour mark, which is pretty average to me and my ultra-dry eyes. I suspect though that I could wear these anywhere between 2-4 hours, possibly 5. Please note though that my eyes are indeed really dry and sensitive so yeah, anything past 3 hours is good in my standards and would probably be equal to about 6 hours for someone with "normal" eyes, heh.

Lens photos below!
All photos taken by yours truly during an August afternoon with a semi-cloudy sky. All close-up photos are free from color filters and such and that's so that the colors would be as true to real life as possible.

Natural indoors room light.
Yellow indoors room light.
Bathroom light.
Flash photo.
Poor (natural) indoors room light.
Unlit corridor. (only distant natural light)
Facing window. (shadow side)
Outdoors, back against the sun. (facing wall)
Outdoors, facing the sun while it's cloudy.
Outdoors, facing the sun.
I feel like my camera fails me before the lenses do as even in the crappiest lights they lit up with the power of black magic or something I'm not even sure how they can manage to stay so reflective even when I'm facing a dead-end unlit corridor with no windows nearby. xD These keep on impressing!

It's a lens that's ultra visible at all times and there's no way that a passerby would not notice your eyes as these are quite literally radiating, lmao. The naturalness goes out of the window but hell, they even have crazy lens in the name so what did you expect? But at the same time I don't feel like they're mega crazy as somehow, especially from a distance, they just look like what I'd imagine fantasy silver eyes to look like...?

I'm probably gushing and raving about these a lot but fuuuuuuuuck, they are so rad that I'm just blown away every time I try them on. It's like the wow-factor doesn't go away and I tell you, few lenses have ever had this much of an impact on me, if any. These lenses are out of this world, something everyone who likes to try something new should try! I'd argue these are one of the coolest lenses on the market, no lie.
I'd recommend the Kronos lenses for costume enthusiasts, fantasy and sci-fi roleplay, bolder fashion styles and basically anyone who is enthralled by the thought of beaming silver eyes. I feel like an elf or something as soon as I put these on and it makes my imagination run wild as I instantly start to think of all the costume possibilities I could do with lenses like this! I shouldn't even need to convince anyone to get the Kronos lenses as I feel like they sell themselves to anyone who's tingling for a fantasy flare.

Distance photo!


Short summary:

Color: 10/10 
If I could give a higher grade, I would. It's motherfucking SILVER and it's unbelievably good!
Design: 10/10 
Hell yes to ultra reflective metallic eyes, what more can I say?
Opacity: 9/10
I was initially expecting some kind of transparency but nope, these ain't having none of that.
Enlargement: 2/10 
Really small, but the black limbal ring provides some kind of illusion of bigger eyes.
Comfort: 6/10 
Generally pleasant but I experience dry bouts on and off and the corners of my vision are blurred.
Naturalness: 2/10 
Silver eyes are not natural but when viewed from a long enough distance they look passable, once we think about an alternative world...

I hope you enjoyed this review and do leave a comment if these lenses inspire you too!
Shiro Samurai is out.