Cast your mind back to July 2016 (if you can) to a particular shot of Gigi Hadid alighting from a blacked-out car onto the streets of New York City. The model looked every inch the modern-day Marilyn, with a bouffant hairdo, shocking-red lips, a white tee, skinny jeans and—most importantly—a killer pair of extreme cat-eye sunglasses in jet black.
That, dear friends, was the moment when one seemingly simple pair of £75 frames (called The Last Lolita and designed by Adam Selman for his Le Specs collaboration) started its journey from new celebrity pick to cult item that can still not be kept in stock over a year later due to the ongoing demand. Since then countless other celebs have joined the fan club: Kendall Jenner, Rita Ora, Katy Perry, Miley Cyrus, Romee Strijd and Zoë Kravitz… the list goes on.
We didn't particularly need further confirmation outside of the fact that we're still desperate to get our hands on a pair and yet fail every time they're back on the shelves, but at Net-a-Porter's S/S 18 trend presentation this week, its buying team really hit the point home: The retailer alone sells hundreds of these in just a few days every time they arrive.
And the trend is set to continue well into next year, with NAP reinvesting budget in both this silhouette (which now comes in many other colourways, including the summer-friendly white), as well as more styles that riff on the collection's signature sharp edges. Already Gigi has worn the latest iteration on repeat (The Fugitive—a slightly more sci-fi finish with thin wire frames and metallic lenses), and although we're in the depths of winter, Selman's specs continue to fill up our Instagram feeds. Not only that, but you'll find that for 2018, many other designers are going down this extreme cat-eye route to follow the phenomenon. Invest now, we say.
So before they sell out (again), shop them below.
Shop the Sunglasses
Next up are the best winter coats to go with your new sunnies.
