I finally got a chance to get an appointment with the optometrist at Costco, and spent about half an hour trying to find a new pair of frames. The last time I got glasses at Costco, I splurged and bought the type that comes with magnetic clip-on sunglasses. I asked about this type again, but was disappointed to find that the clip-on sunglasses were very cheap and flimsy. The frames were also very rounded, which was a disappointment.  I really liked my magnetic clip-on sunglasses for my old frames.

If you are new to Out of Debt Again, you may not know that I was awarded $215 from a local mall after I fell in a pothole in their parking lot. So my goal was to replace my glasses for under $215, if possible, after all it has been two years since I bought my last pair from Costco.

So this is what I ended up picking – the brand is Jill Stuart, the number is JS007.  The photo below shows the brown frames, I chose the maroon.  I have chosen maroon frames many times over the past 36 years of wearing glasses. It seems to be a good color for my face. I also prefer glasses with the spring hinge.  I really love the front of the glasses, I wasn't so thrilled with the “bling” on the arms, but I couldn't find any other frames that I was happy with, that looked good on my face, so I just went for it.

These frames were $59.99 at Costco, which seems to be a good price. I found a range from $91 to $139 while looking around on the ‘net.  As I mentioned in an earlier post, I prefer to wear progressive lenses.  If that makes me vain, so be it.   The trifocal progressive lenses came to $124.99.  The final cost: $184.98.

My eye appointment was $84 at Costco. The optometrist said my eyes are very healthy. My prescription was almost the same, but the reading power was bumped up just a notch. Oh, and I showed her how the finish is chipping off my lenses.  She assured me that unfortunately this is fairly typical for glasses over a year old. I told her the guy at the optical counter told me it was not chipping off, that it was the oils on my skin breaking down the lenses, she didn't think that was the case.  I felt validated.

I am planning to try Zenni Optical… however, I realized as I was shopping for my new frames while at Costco that it is really, really hard to find frames that look good, and that's being there with them in person and getting to try them on.  I want to get a pair from Zenni with single vision, and this way I'll have a backup pair if the Costco lenses start to chip again within the one year warranty.

It will be two weeks before my glasses are shipped back to Costco.  It will be so nice to be able to see more clearly.

Mrs. Accountability