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    Choosing Glasses that Work with Your Beard

    A beard and glasses might make for a strong look, many men struggle to find the ideal frames for their facial hair. EYESEE Mag met with Sarah, founder of La Barbière de Paris barber shop, who shared her top tips for making the right glasses choice when you have a beard.

    Inspired by watching her grandfather

    “La Barbière de Paris” was born of the touching personal history of Sarah Daniel-Hamizi. The visionary entrepreneur was inspired by watching her grandfather’s weekly shaving routine, underneath a great oak tree. Since she was tiny, Sarah knew she wanted to be a barber and at 18, her high-school diploma in hand, she decided to make her life in Paris. Trained by Jean-Louis Bourrasseau, she cut her teeth at OSKAN, a Turkish barber in Paris. It wasn’t easy in the early days, but Sarah kept going. Her colleagues barely said a word to her, but their wives made her lunch every day.

     

    Once she was ready to spread her wings as the first – and only – female barber in Paris, she opened her barbershop, La Barbière de Paris, in 2000. Success swiftly followed and now Sarah runs five salons, with a flagship at her original address on rue Bertin Poirée. Her expert skills and easy chat with clients have helped to differentiate her and win her VOP clients including John Malkovich and Sébastien Chabal in the process.

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    © La Barbière de Paris

    The beard, eyes and glasses all work together

    Sarah has seen her fair share of beards over the course of her 18-year career. And when we ask her whether she has seen many bad beard-glasses combinations, she says yes without hesitation. For Sarah, it’s a question of morphology. Eye and beard color also have a major role to play and her golden rule is to choose the color of your frames very carefully, by “looking at the way the colors of the beard, eyes and glasses all work together. Men tend to go for classic black frames, but they can make dark-haired guys look darker and clash horribly with pale skin and blond hair. They look best on redheads, because they create an interesting contrast”.

    Good to know. “ Take how thick your hair is, into account as well. The more volume you have, the finer your frames should be. And men with shaved heads or very short hair should balance out the bearded bottom-half of the faces with stronger frames, being careful to respect the balance of the face.” When it comes to aesthetics, materials like tortoiseshell, wood will provide instant style and are available in a wide range of colors. Steel and titanium frames will reflect light back onto the face, making you look healthier… another top tip from the expert.

     

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    © La Barbière de Paris - Hôtel Le Crillon