Everyone in Recycla’s household wears eyeglasses. In fact, a couple members of the household have multiple sets of glasses depending on their function — distance vision, reading, prescription sunglasses, etc. Recycla and her husband tend to wear their glasses for years; usually discarding them only if the frames are truly broken beyond repair. Recycla’s children, however, have recently outgrown some of their old frames, so Recycla decided to do some research on what to do with those old glasses.
The best possible solution is to donate your old glasses to an organization that will then distribute them to people who could not otherwise afford glasses. This gives the frames a new life and keeps them out of landfills, not to mention helps out other people in need. Check out this article at Charity Guide for useful links on how your old glasses can be re-used by people here in the U.S. and in developing nations around the world.
If you have frames that need simple repairs, don’t throw them out! Instead, see what you can do to get more life out of them. All drugstores carry those wee little screwdrivers that can tighten the teeny tiny screws in your glasses. If, however, a repair is beyond your capabilities, most optical shops will repair them free of charge.
And if you are in the market for new frames, check out this post on eco eyeglasses!
Tell the Eco Women: Do you wear glasses? If so, what’s your style? Edgy metal European frames? Bright red horn-rimmed frames? Black Clark Kent frames?
In the UK, most chain opticians will take old glasses to send to Africa.
I didn’t realise I was being an edgy European by having metal frames. Go me!
i believe most lions clubs take old glasses. i know my father’s club does. they have a whole eye-care program. even emergency transport for eye-transplants. i was lucky enough to be on one leg of the journey for an eye.
I’m getting new glasses next week! Because for the last 2 and a half years I’ve been wearing a pair that only has one arm (you know, the part that goes over your ear). My Boy broke it when he was maybe 9 months old or so – that reflex stretch only goes so far before the arm snaps off. And that’s sooo not fixable. But since I only wear them at night/morning before putting my real eyes in (contacts), I just made do.
I have no idea what my style is. But I’m going to have fun finding out! (If only ICU made regular frames!) My father-in-law truly recycled some glasses – he found a pair of his grandfather’s old specs and had them fitted with new lenses so he could wear them. They’re pretty dang awesome.
No glasses for me, but D has a new pair!
Never even occurred to me that you could donate old eyeglasses. I have a drawerful. Hope somebody wants my circa 1990 “Beverly Hills 90210″ brand frames (no joke).
Lions Clubs! Please donate to the Lions Club. They do great things for people with visual impairments, including recycling eyeglasses. They sponsor a camp in my state for kids with all kinds of disabilities. My teen has loved it – since he was 6, and he’s 18 now!