"I Look Like a Demon" — This Woman's Contacts Have Built-in Sunglasses That Make Eyes Look Bizarre
Published Nov. 8 2023, 6:30 p.m. ET
I never needed glasses as a kid, but I remember being fascinated by the idea of transition lenses for glasses whenever I would see commercials for them on TV. They would be advertised as lenses that could seamlessly change from regular lenses to sunglasses when exposed to sunlight for some dual-action glasses-wearing convenience. I even remember asking my friend who wore them how they worked, and he explained that there was a special chemical in the lenses themselves.
I still think they're pretty neat, but I would have never thought to use them on contact lenses. In fact, it sounds downright dangerous to have that stuff in your eye! But one woman on TikTok uses contacts like these and they're just as weird as they sound. They supposedly double as built-in sunglasses, but they come off as creepy. Let's break it down.
This woman's transition contacts look super strange!
In mid-September 2023, Emily Zeck on TikTok (@emilyzeck) showed off her transition contact lenses. She calls them a "game changer for sensitive eyes," but admits that they look super weird.
"My contact lenses have built-in sunglasses in them and it's the creepiest thing ever," Emily admits. Naturally, she shows them off for the camera.
For all intents and purposes, they work exactly the way you would expect traditional transition lenses to work. After being exposed to sunlight, they slowly change from regular lenses to darker lenses in order to simulate the same sunglasses feel without having anything on your face.
But while that darker look would be perfectly normal on a regular pair of glasses, you get completely different results with contacts. Because the contacts themselves get darker, they end up completely blacking out your eyes.
"Not only do I not have to keep sunglasses on my face while I surf, but they also double as man repellent because I look like a demon," Emily jokes at the end of her video.
If you've ever seen Supernatural before, you'll know exactly what she means. After all, the lenses go completely dark as sunglasses. In a follow-up, Emily even revealed that the contact lenses are bigger than her whole iris. That's definitely got a palpable creepy factor to it.
I can understand the utility behind opting for contact lenses instead of regular glasses for physical activity. By that same measure, I completely get the idea of wanting to shield your eyes from the sun on any given day. Still, I feel as if no one on the design team considered the idea that transition lenses wouldn't look natural in execution.
Regardless, this seems to have won over people who need contact lenses or just want an excuse to creep out their friends. One TikToker in the comments section joked, "I want these!! My friends are getting a little too comfortable around me."
On a more genuine note, another person wrote, "I've wanted these for decades. I have to wear sunglasses all the time, so I always have sunglasses lines on my face."
Though they may barely be a step up from novelty contacts that you might use for an anime cosplay, these transition lenses could actually prove to be useful for anyone who doesn't mind the demon look!