Summer is almost here, which means beach days, sundowners, and an excuse to buy a whole new wardrobe – and what summer wardrobe is complete without a pair of stylish sunglasses.

It’s the accessory you’ll wear most often over the next few months, so it’s worth investing, especially when you consider how important something like polarised lenses actually is.

To get you going, we checked out some of the hottest trends on the runway at Paris Fashion Week. This year, it’s all about retro meets futuristic, with compact bags and giant sunglasses.

Here’s FashionUnited:

Summer is as all about sunglasses. And if Paris is any barometer in 2019 they will be as big as picture windows.

Dior was first to burst the frame with big boxy skin-tone shades, followed by Gucci’s jet black giants inspired by sleeping masks with Loewe’s equally massive ones a little more modular.

Rick Owens and Paris newcomers Marques’Almeida continued the gigantism with almost identical fighter pilot visor shades.

Let’s get real, unless you’re a supermodel, most of these shades are going to make you look like a giant bug or an extra in Blade Runner.

So how do you stay on trend without looking like an idiot?

You invest in sunglasses that embody the trend, but are classic enough to stand the test of time. To set you on your way, I took some of the top sunglass trends at Fashion Week and found their designer counterparts at Sunglass Hut.

Starting with Gucci SS19 and Balenciaga SS19 in Paris:

Gucci’s jet black giant visors inspired by sleeping masks are great in theory, but not super practical if you want your sunnies to transition from outfit to outfit. Stay on-trend, but stylish with these gold/brown beauties from Bvlgari at Sunglass Hut:

They add a bit of glitz to the visor trend while also incorporating the nude tones and tinted glass showcased by Dior at this year’s Fashion Week.

Next up, the retro trend continues with giant shades and a hint of tortoiseshell by Courrèges:

Tortoiseshell is timeless and classy with a bit of edge. Get the look with these retro Panthos shades by Ray-Ban at Sunglass Hut:

Or, my personal favourite, these oversized vintage classics by PRADA at Sunglass Hut:

Finally, big and bold was contrasted with small and boxy with offerings like this also from Courrèges:

Get a toned-down version of this that captures the tinted nude tones and paired down square shape, with these sunnies by Maui Jim at Sunglass Hut:

Or these cute, colourful statement sunglasses by PRADA:

In celebration of summer and new shades, Sunglass Hut will be offering 50% off selected styles until October 14, so there’s no excuse not to update your style.

Let the sunshine in.

[source:fashionunited]