Special Effect Contacts - Be the Center of Attention at Costume
Parties
Theatrical contact lenses are favorites for costume
parties. And for a good reason - nothing can make your costume
seem more real than a pare of bright inhuman eyes. However, with
so many special effect contacts available it is important to
know how to select good ones.
All special effect contacts are soft contact lenses. This means
that, with proper care and cleaning, you will hardly notice
there is anything in your eyes. Most people can wear costume
contact lenses without any problems.
What types of special effect contact lenses are on offer?
Theatrical lenses come in hundreds of exciting designs. You can
get cat's eye contacts, red or black spirals, wolf eyes,
bloodshot eyes, vampire, white-out, black-out or even an
American flag design. The most popular and trustworthy brands of
special effect contact lenses are Crazy Lenses from Cooper
Vision and Wild Eyes from Ciba Vision.
See photos of people wearing costume special effect contact lenses
As all color contact lenses, costume lenses can be produced
digitally (printed by a computer) or hand-painted. As you would
expect, the price of hand-painted contacts is much higher than
mass produced, digital ones - usually upwards from $150.
Hand-painted lenses are the most beautiful, and every detail is
very clear.
However, don't assume that mass produced lenses are no good.
They make an excellent addition to your costume for a Halloween
party, or just for a fun night out at a club. On the other hand,
if you plan to shoot a home movie, where your face will be seen
large and clear, a pair of more expensive, hand-painted
theatrical lenses would be better.
You can also order custom special effect lenses - an artist will
paint any design you like. Naturally, though, custom theatrical
lenses are the most expensive.
What effect would you like - just to change the color portion of
your eye to something exotic, or to cover the whites of your
eyes as well and make them look completely inhuman?
Most theatrical contact lenses only cover your iris, this way
you can get an effect of cat eyes, wolf eyes, red-hot eyes or
spirals. But there's another type of costume contact called
scleral lenses. As the name suggests, this lens covers your
entire sclera (the visible portion of your eye, including the
white). Scleral lenses are more flexible in design, because they
are not restricted by the circular shape of the lens and whites
around. The effects that you have seen in Predator or Dune are
achieved with scleral lenses.
However, scleral costume lenses are harder to manufacture, so
they are always more expensive than the circular ones - but the
effect is well worth it.
Can I wear costume contacts if I need vision correction?
The most popular brands, like Wild Eyes and Crazy lenses, come
with or without visual correction. Crazy lenses also come in the
most common size - diameter 14.2 and base curve 8.6. This means
that they would suit the majority of people.
Most other costume contacts can be only be ordered in plano.
However some companies, allow you to specify your prescription,
especially when the lenses are custom made.
Make your costume really stand out with a pair of scary
theatrical lenses. You will have great fun and be the center of
everybody's attention.