Tag: glasses

Use Up Your FSA or Insurance Benefits Before They Disappear!

Posted on November 11, 2022

With all the hustle and bustle of the holidays, it’s important to remember that if you have unused funds remaining in your Flexible Spending Account (FSA) or vision insurance benefits, they could be expiring at the end of the year. One way many people choose to spend these dollars is on eyewear like eyeglasses, prescription sunglasses, or a yearly supply of contact lenses.

Maybe it’s been a year or two since you updated your prescription or had your eyes checked, in which case we recommend an annual eye exam and fresh pair of eyeglasses. If your current glasses suit you just fine, but you don’t own a backup pair, now could be a great time to gain the peace of mind of knowing that if you do break your favorite pair of specs, you’ll have a another waiting for you that you love just as much.

Daily glasses wearers are all too familiar with the frustration that comes with not owning a pair of prescription sunglasses, but what they may not know is Longe Optical can turn virtually any eyeglass frame into sunglasses. Our helpful opticians love styling our guests, and even if you can’t find a pair of traditional sunglasses to suit your style, your options at Longe are practically limitless. We use the highest quality polarized lenses to customize regular frames on a daily basis, and with our all-digital ClearVu Experience producing an ultra-accurate prescription, your vision will not be compromised in the least.

At Longe Optical we take contact lens care very seriously. Contacts are classified as a medical device, and a current contact lens exam with one of our independent optometrists is required to order a new supply. This is to help protect your eyes from problems caused by Contact Lens Overwear Syndrome or improperly sized contacts, which can cause long-term vision and health problems. Ordering contacts from Longe Optical is simple and convenient — we carry dozens of the most popular brands and styles, and are more than happy to provide guests with various trial lenses so they can find the contacts that suit them perfectly.

Even though insurance often eliminates or reduces your out-of-pocket expense, we offer some very budget-friendly promotions year-round — including 50% off a second pair of glasses and 50% off glasses when you purchase a year’s supply of contact lenses. We will do everything we can to help you maximize your insurance benefits and minimize the money you spend on eyewear.

For a list of our in-network insurers you can click here, or give us a call at (260) 469-3937. And if we’re out-of-network for you, we can often find special discounts or rebates to help you save as much or more than if you went somewhere in-network.

We hope you and your family have a wonderful holiday season, and if there’s anything we can do to help you see, look, and live your best, our friendly staff at all six of our Fort Wayne locations is ready to help!

What You Should Know About Fort Wayne’s Only All-digital Onsite Optical Lab

Posted on August 20, 2020

Our lab here at Longe Optical is vastly unique! We are the only fully digital lab found within the entire state of Indiana, utilizing the ZEISS digital technology and the Schneider world-class equipment!

When you buy a pair of HD lenses created in our digital lab, you’ll experience up to 50% clearer vision, sharper images, and brighter colors. In addition, our lenses fit in most frames and because the process is completely in house, our costs are similar to traditional frames.

Our unique ZEISS technology system takes the 60 second digital profile of your eye during your comprehensive eye exam to create an ultra-accurate prescription. Your eye’s refractive power distribution is analyzed and represented across the entire pupil aperture. This means you’ll be able to see better than you ever thought possible!

Using our world-class equipment through Schneider in our lab, we’re also able to deliver a customized pair of frames with anti-reflective coating to you in five days or less, when the industry standard is usually 12. Schneider’s precision machines offer pre- and fine-polishing methods to create the best lenses in a very economical way, allowing us to also keep your costs down while still giving you the best product. Within our in-house lab, we are able to apply anti-reflective coating and blue-protect coating to nearly every pair of frames.

Longe Optical’s lab has been fully digital for eight years, bringing a high level of expertise to our guests. Our lab technicians are also highly experienced with some having over 42 years of experience!

We’re proud to offer this entirely digital eye care experience in-house and we want to make sure you are seeing your best while also providing you with the best care possible. To schedule your eye exam today, visit longeoptical.com/request-an-exam or give us a a call at (260) 469-3937.

Protecting Your Eyes from Blue Light — Why Quality Matters

Posted on August 6, 2020

Have you heard different terms thrown around for “blue light” protection and wondered what the difference is between these terms? Have you wondered if blue light is even harmful to your eyes?

A lot of optical companies refer to the coating they use to protect against blue light with their own branded term. Here at Longe Optical, we utilize the ZEISS DuraVision BlueProtect on our opticals. This coating has been specifically developed for people who spend a lot of their time indoors and are exposed to blue-violet light from LED light bulbs, TVs, computers, and tablets. For example, if you work at a computer for long periods of time your eyes would definitely benefit from this product.

We can also add an anti-reflective layer on the back of the lens to reduce the indirect light reflected into the eye. This allows our technology to block UV rays coming into the eye from all directions.

All digital devices emit blue light, a low wavelength, light energy light that can potentially damage your eyes over a long period of time. Although there is an element of blue light that we’re exposed to on a regular basis, for example from the sun, the concern with digital devices comes from their close proximity to users and the amount of time they’re used. Although not all blue light is bad, overexposure can lead to things like digital eye strain and retinal cell damage that can increase your risk for issues like macular degeneration. It’s important to know what blue light protection you are purchasing because not all blue light protection is the same. If your glasses aren’t protecting against the right kind of blue light or if they have a cheap coating, they won’t effectively protect your eyes.

Make sure to check out Longe Optical’s unique ZEISS DuraVision BlueProtect lens coating! Adding this feature to your lenses can ensure you have comfortable vision, even when there is a high level of blue light present. This BlueProtect filter reduces portions of the blue light spectrum from reaching your eyes, and many eyeglass wearers with the BlueProtect report greater visual comfort thanks to this coating.

Find Your Personal Style

Posted on July 31, 2020

At all five of our Fort Wayne locations, you’ll find friendly, experienced, and stylish opticians ready and eager to help you find your own signature style. We believe not only are perfectly-fitting, vision-correcting eyeglasses essential to our overall health, they are a fun fashion accessory just as important as your favorite piece of jewelry. So many people wear glasses on a daily basis, and we feel everyone should be comfortable and see optimally every time they put them on.

At Pine Valley Longe Optical, our team of opticians — Sydney, Ceirah, and Emari — all love helping guests pick out a new pair of glasses! Our opticians want to help them not only find a pair that fits correctly, but one that appropriately matches their personality. And fortunately, all three of these ladies have great taste and expertise in frames and offer some of their insight into the best brands and tips for wearing a pair of glasses!

Sydney personally enjoys the Maui Jim sunglasses collection. One year she bought a pair for a family member as a Christmas gift, and now her entire family is hooked on the brand. Maui Jim is one of the premier brands in sunglasses, utilizing high-quality materials and craftsmanship. They back their product with a 100% guarantee that you won’t squint when you’re wearing them and their models have 100% UV protection, customizable lenses in different colors, and come with great customer service.

When helping guests, Sydney loves fitting the brand Masunaga. She looks to make sure that a guest’s glasses are centered, and they rest comfortably on the bridge of the nose when fitting them. She also considers the style of the person who walks in and often offers an option or two to the guest that is nothing like what they are currently wearing, giving the guest a new perspective. Although the guest might stay with their same style, more often than not they enjoy the look of the new style and will go with Sydney’s recommendation.

Ceirah is also major Maui Jim fan, but her favorite brand for opticals is Dutz, created and designed in Holland. She is fond of their durability (they are made of the same metal found in iPhones), their status as hypoallergenic, with lightweight and cool, funky styles to pick from. When fitting a customer for glasses, she places a heavy emphasis on comfort, ensuring the glasses fit the way the brand intended.

Emari enjoys the G arrett Leight and Mr. Leight collections based out of California because of their unique round frame options. When fitting other people, she often considers the eye color of the customer and then picks a frame that complements it. For example, if someone has brown eyes, she may look for olive-toned frames to match.

With so many frame and lens options and combinations available for your digital prescription, the process can be overwhelming, so Emari and her team hand-select several choices for each guest to help narrow it down.

Ensuring 100% guest satisfaction is the goal of every Longe Optical team member, so stop into any Fort Wayne Longe Optical today and our team members will be delighted to help you find your new favorite pair of glasses.

Helpful Hints for Selecting Eyewear

Posted on August 5, 2019

Now that you’ve scheduled back to school eye exams for the kids – what do you do if they need glasses?

Children’s eyes can change rapidly, so be sure your child has an up-to-date eyeglass prescription for the best possible vision and comfort before investing in new glasses.

There is no shortage of children’s eyeglasses and it’s important to keep factors like fit, quality, and fashion in mind. It can be difficult figuring out which glasses your child will be willing to wear — and if they will last longer than the ride home. Here are some shopping tips to help you choose stylish and durable glasses your child will love.

Choose a modern, attractive style

Eyeglasses have become a staple in the fashion world and kids frames are no exception. Ray-Ban, Candies, Lily Pulitzer, and others offer styles from classic to trendy, perfectly sized, and designed for any cool kid on campus. For a more sporty look, Nike, Oakley, and Puma all offer superior durability along with stylish design. And with a wide range of color options and modern shapes to select from, you can match your team colors in style.

Select the perfect lenses

Children’s lenses should be made of polycarbonate. These materials are significantly more impact-resistant than other lens materials for added safety. There are a few ways to enhance your look and at the same time protect your eyes. One option is photochromic lenses, which darken automatically in sunlight outdoors in a range of colors to choose from. Another choice is anti-reflective coating, which not only enhances cosmetic appearance (no glare on lenses in those school photos), but they can reduce eye strain caused by digital device use.

Purchase a “backup pair”
Because children can be tough on their glasses, it’s a good idea to purchase a second, or backup, pair of eyeglasses for them — especially for those with a strong prescription who cannot function without his or her glasses.

We would love to see you and share with you what makes us special. With our one-of-a-kind kids package, all-digital eye care experience, exclusive frame designs, and personalized service, we are passionate about providing the best care to allow you to see and be seen!