We love it when designers prominently feature their eyewear lines in their seasonal fashion collections.

It’s even better when they put their eyewear on the runways.

Which is exactly what Mark Badgley and James Mischka did during their Spring/Summer 2010 preview at the 11th Amsterdam International Fashion Week.

The spring/summer ready-to-wear collection from Badgley Mischka was stunning enough on its own.

But what really made it sizzle was Badgley Mischka’s decision to place its couture sunwear on every single model on the catwalk:

This made for one of the most conspicuous displays of sunglasses in any major collection this year (and possibly in history), which of course makes us overjoyed, since we carry both the Badgley Mischka Couture Eyewear Collection and the very sunglass models featured in Amsterdam.

After more than a decade of silver dominating eyewear, it was also refreshing to Badgley Mischka pair gold sunwear with their spring/summer fashions.

White gold made a showing as well, but the emphasis was definitely on yellow, which perfectly complimented the warm browns, bronzes and golds in the Amsterdam collection.

Badgley Mischka and Sama deserve much of the credit for reviving the aviator style sunglass and making it chic and fashionable again.

The Perry with 22k gold lenses (which is repeatedly featured in the Amsterdam show) is a favorite of Angelina Jolie and other celebs and recently made an appearance in Rhianna’s So Hard video.

According to Brian Glascow of Sama Eyewear, the sunglass designs featured in the Badgley Mischka Amsterdam collection were custom made by Sama with special couture lenses especially for the show.

Out of this concept was the birth of the 22k and 18k gold lenses that are available as a premium couture option on select Badgley Mischka frames like the Boyd and Perry.

While aviators have been slowly making a comeback for the better part of two years, there really hasn’t been an ultra-premium, couture alternative to the classic Ray-Ban until Badgley Mischka and Sheila Vance of Sama introduced the 22k gold version of the Perry and Boyd sunglasses.

The Amsterdam show from Badgley Mischka also shows how versatile the aviator truly is (once you lux it up a bit.)

Notice how effortlessly the gold Badgley Mischka sunglasses move from formal wear, to flirty summer dresses, to swimwear.

There’s a reason that certain designs in eyewear become “classics” and the Badgley Mischka Spring/Summer collection clearly demonstrates the enduring appeal of the metal aviator.

The Badgley Mischka Eyewear models featured in the Amsterdam collection include: Perry, Boyd, Alfie, Corset, Bradley, Grant (Optical Frame) and the Marilyn.

Tomorrow we’ll post the second half of the Amsterdam show, which pairs these fantastic sunglasses up with beach and swimwear designs from the Badgley Mischka summer 2010 collection.

The Badgley Mischka line of couture eyewear occupies a special place in The Visionista’s heart.

I’m not certain what it is, but Badgley Mischka eyewear continues to be one of my favorite luxury sunglass and ophthalmic lines that we offer at Urban Optiques.

While their eyewear line doesn’t generate the buzz of a Chanel or Tom Ford, it really should.

In my opinion, it’s one of the best kept eyewear secrets out there: Badgley Mischka’s eyewear is glamorous and beautifully-constructed and they definitely get “seen.”

Plus, they travel well — I’m currently wearing a gorgeous pair of Badgley Mischka “Marilyn” in pearl (with tiny little, subtle crystals along the temples) and they look amazing with everything from jeans to a well-tailored skirt-suit. I get tons of compliments whenever I have them on.

Which brings me to today’s “Designer Sunglass of the Week”: The Badgley Mischka “Dorothy.”

The “Dorothy” Sunglass from Badgley Mischka: Inspired by the Golden Age of Hollywood

First, you need to know that the Badgley Mischka Couture Eyewear Collection is inspired by classic Hollywood and all of the frames are named after famous starlets or legends of the screen: Greta, Marilyn, Ginger, Lana, Jayne, Lucille, Elizabeth … you get the point.

And then, as if to throw a wrench into the whole Badgley Mischka Eyewear naming convention, there is the “Dorothy” sunglass.

The “Dorothy” features silver bows on the temples, which is an obvious nod to Judy Garland’s “Dorothy” in The Wizard of Oz.

Why “Dorothy” Versus “Judy?”

Why, in this particular case, Badgley Mischka chose to ditch their convention of naming the eyewear models after actors or actresses, and instead chose to chose the name of the character that the actress played is up for debate.  My theory is that the bowtie’s association with “Dorothy” is just much more natural for people than with Judy Garland.

But we won’t know for certain unless Mark Badgley and James Mischka drop by to leave their comments. And while I think that’s unlikely, you never know.

Inspired Design and Creativity in a Couture Sunglass

The ‘Dorothy” sunglass is one of those examples of the  originality that marks the Badgley-Mischka asthetic, period.

You can almost imagine the discussion that produced this sunglass design:  “What if we took a fantastic, glamorous acetate frame and accented it with  bows on each temple?”

Pure genius.

We were lucky enough to grab the  “Dorothy” sunglass from Sama when it became available and it continues to be one of the most uniquely-inspired sunglass-designs in our shop.

The Badgley Mischka “Dorothy” sunglass is available in Jet (Black), Sable, Iris, Rose and Pearl.

We currently have the “Dorothy” sunglass in “Jet” in our luxury eyewear display.  If you’re in downtown Northville shopping, stop by and try it on. It’s truly amazing.