It was 2021 after I slipped on a pair of Prada Baroque sun shades within the coronary heart of London. The eye was prompt. Strangers paused mid-stride. Compliments echoed from each nook. That swirl of daring Baroque curves on my face wasn’t only a style assertion—it was a dialog starter. It was that very second that led me to launch Gracie Opulanza, my platform for luxurious style, sincere opinions, and pattern forecasting.
However let’s rewind.
These sun shades had been a 2021 model of Prada’s now-iconic Baroque assortment. Lovely? Sure. Impactful? Completely. However the extra I wore them, the extra I spotted one thing was flawed. These weren’t crafted like a luxurious merchandise needs to be. They felt lighter, flimsier, cheaper.
That’s after I determined to match them to the unique 2012 Prada Baroque sun shades, the very pair that began the craze. The distinction was staggering. This text isn’t nearly sun shades. It’s in regards to the decline of expertise. The strain between branding and high quality. And what your eyewear alternative says in regards to the period we’re in.
The 2012 Baroque: A Masterpiece in Movement
Let’s begin with the 2012 assortment—the 12 months Prada’s Baroque sun shades took the style world by storm. These sun shades weren’t equipment. They had been artwork. With their outsized swirling arms, thick sculpted acetate, and unapologetic boldness, they represented every little thing Prada stood for: eccentric sophistication and unmistakable Italian aptitude.
And sure, they had been made in Italy—and you could possibly really feel it.
The acetate was dense and opulent to the contact. The metallic detailing was real, not plated plastic. The hinges had a satisfying firmness, opening and shutting with a stage of resistance that whispered, “You got high quality.” The lenses themselves had been heavy and scratch-resistant. Ten years on, they nonetheless carry out.
Sporting the 2012 Baroque felt like holding historical past. Not simply due to the aesthetics, however due to the best way they had been engineered to final. I’ve worn many sun shades over time, however none that felt like a sculptural relic fairly like these.
Venice 2021: Model Meets Compromise
Quick-forward to 2021.
I used to be in Venice, town of masked opulence. I walked right into a Prada boutique and acquired the brand new Baroque design, launched that 12 months. They seemed gorgeous within the field—similar swirl, similar assertion silhouette.
However as soon as I wore them? One thing felt off.
- The frames had been feather-light—nearly suspiciously so.
- The lenses felt like tinted plastic, not the wealthy weight of the 2012 pair.
- The metallic accents had been dulled and simply scratched—a transparent signal of poor materials plating.
- And worst of all, the interior emblem began peeling after only a few wears.
The second they had been uncovered to warmth and humidity in Asia, the coating on the body began to bubble. This wasn’t simply poor luck—it was a design failure.
That is the place luxurious become branding theatre. These glasses had all of the visible impression of Prada, however not one of the tactile credibility.
Who Makes Prada Eyewear?
Should you’re questioning how this occurred, the reply lies behind the scenes: Luxottica.
Prada eyewear is produced beneath license by Luxottica, the Italian eyewear big accountable for Ray-Ban, Gucci, Persol, and dozens of designer licenses together with Chanel, Versace, and Dolce & Gabbana.
Whereas Prada dictates the aesthetic, Luxottica controls the manufacturing, supplies, and provide chain. And as Luxottica expanded and scaled, one thing acquired misplaced: craftsmanship.
The 2012 Baroque sun shades had been born in an period the place even mass-produced luxurious nonetheless demanded precision. However the 2021 model? It felt mass-manufactured for quantity, not made with love.
Technically, each fashions are “Made in Italy”, however not all “Made in Italy” is equal. That label in the present day is usually stretched skinny. A screw added in an Italian manufacturing unit can legally qualify an merchandise as Italian-made—even when 90% of it was assembled elsewhere. It’s a authorized loophole, and luxurious customers are those paying the value.
Asia Is aware of the Distinction – So Do I
Residing between Italy and Asia, I’ve seen the complete spectrum of eyewear— from gorgeous handcrafted classic frames to suspicious “designer” copies that disintegrate in weeks.
And I can let you know—the 2021 Prada Baroque sun shades really feel extra just like the latter.
I’ve picked up replicas in Bangkok, Kuala Lumpur, and Bali that seemed satisfactory till you touched the hinges. That’s the giveaway. The metallic flexes, the plastic creaks, and the emblem prints fade. Sadly, the 2021 Prada sun shades I purchased from an precise Prada boutique weren’t far off.
Even Italian opticians I visited in Arezzo and Florence held the 2021 pair and quietly shook their heads. One even stated:
“Lovely design. However these received’t final 5 years. The fabric is unstable.”
For a €400 funding, that’s unacceptable.
Luxurious or Simply Branding?
The unhappy reality is that this: fashionable luxurious is more and more about model optics, not product integrity.
The 2021 Baroque sun shades are Instagram eyewear. They {photograph} superbly. They appeal to consideration. They enable you promote the dream. However as soon as the filters fade, so does the body.
Prada, like many luxurious labels, has shifted focus from artisanship to accessibility. They need a youthful market, quicker turnover, and a much bigger slice of the social media pie.
However in doing so, they’ve risked alienating the very individuals who constructed their legacy—those that purchase for lasting magnificence, not a trending hashtag.
Gracie’s Eyewear Forecast: Purchase Good, Purchase Classic
What does this imply for you?
Should you love style, shield your requirements. Right here’s my pattern forecast for eyewear in 2025:
- Purchase classic: Monitor down the unique Baroque assortment. You’ll discover them on Vestiaire Collective, The RealReal, or trusted classic shops. These had been constructed to endure—and so they nonetheless do.
- Keep away from blind loyalty: Simply because it says Prada doesn’t imply it’s made with pleasure.
- Test the load: Actual acetate has density. Lenses ought to really feel stable. {Hardware} needs to be metallic—not metallic.
- Attempt impartial manufacturers: I’ve seen higher building from lesser-known Italian labels, made in tiny workshops in Florence and the Veneto.
Should you love design but additionally worth integrity, skip the mass-produced emblem traps. Search for craftsmanship. Search for frames that really feel like jewelry—not toys.
Remaining Ideas
It’s ironic. A 2021 Prada pair launched my model, nevertheless it’s the 2012 Baroque design that also conjures up me.
One was constructed for impression. The opposite was constructed for Instagram.
I’ll all the time recognize Prada’s capacity to mesmerize with design, however I can not belief that the identify ensures high quality. That’s not bitterness—it’s readability. And readability, in any case, is what eyewear is meant to supply.
So subsequent time you’re about to drop a whole lot on a brand new pair of “designer” sun shades, ask your self: Would I nonetheless need these if there have been no emblem?
If the reply is sure, you’re onto one thing actual.
If not—put them down and go discover the actual Baroque.
