Anyone who’s seen Japanese comics, cartoon videos, anime art or – Lady Gaga’s "Bad Romance" video – will instantly be struck by the uncommon look of the girls – big eyes that, by making the rest of the face look small, add the cuteness and sex appeal prized by many Japanese men. Since no amount of cosmetic surgery will make actual human eyes larger, some girls are trying another way to up their cute quotient: extra-wide contact lenses!
These are no ordinary contacts – they’re not only tinted, but tinted prominently in the extra-wide outer ring. The result is the appearance of a bigger, wider iris.
To quote the sales copy, "Wanna get big, watery shiny eyes without any surgery? CRAVE AND ENVY NO MORE!" The extra-wide contact lenses are made by a variety of companies including Geo and Dueba, and cost in the $30-$50 per pair range. It seems they’re not just cosmetic – send in your prescription and the lenses will be made to order.
Optometrists such as Drs. North & Watson would like to remind potential buyers of Big Circle, Baby Doll or other glamorous anime-style contact lenses that these and ALL contact lenses "are a medical device, thus monitored by the FDA," and improper fitting can cause irreparable damage to the wearer’s eye or eyes!
This lens site has a great collection of crazy contact lenses for you to check out, including some anime contact lenses in their Anime and Fantasy section. As well, the site featuring Big Circle contact lenses sells a few other beauty aids including a painful-sounding "nose clipper" that demands a posting of its own – keep a big, watery, shiny eye on this blog!
*** UPDATED! Originally published on August 9th, 2008
