(Pictured above: Isla series contact lenses)

One of the greatest attractions of colored contacts is the fact that they give you the opportunity to finally have the eye color you’ve always dreamed of. With over 50% of the world having brown eyes, you can be assured that most colored contacts out there are designed for brown eyes. Remember, though, that not all shades of contact lenses go well with the natural color of your eyes. Just because a pair of contacts is colored violet, doesn’t automatically mean it’ll give you Liz Taylor eyes. If your natural eye color is brown or black, the following brief guide should point you on the right track towards choosing the right type and color of contacts.

(Pictured above: EyeCandys Desire series contact lenses)

Getting the perfect eye color is like choosing the perfect lippie, the perfect accessory, or the perfect outfit. To achieve a color that suits you best, you must consider two things: your eye color and the opacity of your target contacts.

For light-colored eyes, choosing colored contacts is actually pretty easy. This is because light irises won't mottle the lens pattern like dark irises would. If you want a subtle yet flattering look, you can go for enhancement contacts which provide a good but muted color boost. Enhancement contacts are perfect for creating a level of depth and definition to light-colored irises. The only issue for light-eyed people is if they want to wear a dark-brown shade. Because most dark brown eye contacts (or circle lenses) have the majority of pigment on the border of the lens, the middle part remains relatively translucent or even transparent. Hence, this situation necessitates circle lenses with a thicker limbal ring.

The effect of brown (left) and dark brown (right) circle lenses on light eyes

For light eyes, we recommend our DESIRE series. Some of their colored contacts have been specifically designed to fit light blue, grey or green irises better than circle lenses that are popular in East Asia. This has to do with the area covered by the colored portion of the lens, in relation to a small optical zone (where one's underlying pupil color would peek out). Many photos of DESIRE lenses modelled on light eyes have been taken for your reference - check the slideshow below.

Choosing colored contacts for dark eyes is a totally different story! This is because you always have to consider the fact that the lens (which always hassome degree of transparency)will be muddled by your dark iris.

Opaque or semi-opaque contactsare the best colored contacts for dark eyes, especially for those who want to totally switch to a different eye color. This means the lens has more colored pixels per unit surface area. Contrary to enhancement contacts, opaque/semi-opaque colored contacts have higher pigmentation, thereby changing dark eyes even to the even lightest blues or greens.

Whether you want a dramatic pop of purple or grey or a toned down hazel, colored contacts for dark eyes can be just as versatile as you want.

What if you want to have eye color other than blue, green, or gray? Well, then, you’d best go for opaque colored contacts. Unlike tinted contacts, opaque lenses are the best colored contacts for dark eyes. This type of lens is typically patterned with 3 or more tones, ensuring your underlying eye color doesn’t show through at all. Opaque lenses cover your irises almost entirely, with only the center (pupil hole) left uncovered so you can still see. With this type of lens, you can make your eyes as dazzling as you want them to be. Try fun shades like pink, violet or purple contacts.

There are lenses known as enhancement contact lenses. As the name suggests, they’re meant solely to enhance your natural color. This type of lens typically doesn’t come in brown. Although wearing enhancement contact lenses in another color won’t necessarily hurt your eyes or make you look weird, they might not give the color payoff you're seeking, since they aren’t really designed to cover your eye color. Enhancement contacts will just tint your eyes, which is why they're more suitable for lighter irises (e.g. blue, grey, green).

Getting color contacts for the first time might spring up questions: Should you get a prescription first? If you don't know your prescription, is it safe to opt for non-prescription contacts?

For US residents, eye prescription is a requirement when purchasing contact lenses as regulated by the Fairness to Contact Lens Consumer Law (FCLCA). While having a prescription is not as strictly regulated in other countries, having your eyes checked and securing a prescription is always a good idea before getting contacts.

Getting your prescription is easy but deciphering the numbers and letters could be like cryptography! To have better grasp of the basics of your eye prescription, here's a quick list of eye parameters you need to know:

1. OD - also known as oculus dexter; refers to the right eye
2. OS - also known as oculus sinister; refers to the left eye
3. Sphere (SPH) - amount of lens power that indicates nearsightedness or farsightedness; a positive value indicates farsightedness (hyperopia), while a negative value indicates nearsightedness (myopia)
4. Cylinder (CYL)- indicates presence of astigmatism; if the column is left blank, it means either a slight amount or an absence of astigmatism
5. Axis - a constant co-present value with CYL that indicates the orientation of your astigmatism in relation to the curvature of your eye; values range from 1-180 (a 000 value is the same as having a 180 value)
6. Add - the magnifying power required to correct focus for distance correction; indicates magnifying power for reading, progressive and bifocal lenses
7. Pupillary Distance (PD) - indicates the distance from the center of one pupil to the center of the other pupil. This is only needed for glasses, not contact lenses; therefore, it may be missing from your Rx.

If you are lucky enough to be someone who has both glasses and contact lenses, then you may notice some other measurement differences when examining your prescription. For example, commonly there is a cylinder and axis value on a glasses prescription but not for a pair of contact lenses. The only times you may find a contact lens prescription with an axis and cylinder is if it’s a toric lens or multifocal lens.

Since contact lenses are much more delicate and need to fit the eye, there are certain specifications that they have that a glasses prescription will not. With a contact lens prescription, you’ll be able to see the base curve and the diameter. The base curve is simply the curvature of the lens and is on the shape of your eye. The diameter specifies the overall size of the lens.

So, with so many differences, how can you possibly find a way to change your glasses into a pair of contact lenses without having to go through excess testing? That’s when a vertex conversion chart for contact lenses comes in. They are extremely useful tools that all eye doctors use when determining how to convert glasses prescription to contacts.

This chart includes different figures for you to compare. The first thing you do is finding out your glasses prescription figures. These are then ‘back vertexed’ using the chart to turn them into a figure that allows you to find the correct contact lenses for you.

Vertex conversion charts are pretty simple to use. You just have to know where to look and understand what the columns mean. The ‘glasses lens power’ column refers to the power on your current glasses prescription. If this figure is negative, then you’ll be converted to the figure on the left of this column. If the figure is positive, then your converted figure is on the right.

However, many vertex conversion charts only start at glasses prescriptions of +/-4.00D. This doesn’t take into account any powers lower than this figure. This is because the converted power is not much different from your original power. You can get away with using the same power as your glasses prescription when converting to a contact lens prescription. The one exception for this case, however, is when you have an astigmatism.

Contact lenses are not a “one-size-fits-all” accessory. Circle lenses are a type of lens that’s encircled by a dark rim and a larger than normal diameter to create a dolly look. To get the size of circle lenses (or any contact lens) that will accurately fit your eyes, take out your latest eye prescription and look for your base curve (BC). As the curvature of the cornea varies from person to person, it’s important to verify whether the BC of a particular pair of lenses will suit your eyeball size. Getting the wrong BC will cause an uncomfortable wear. If your contacts’ BC is higher than your actual BC, it will be too loose and will keep on sliding through across the surface of your eyes. If your contacts’ BC is lower than your actual BC, your eyes will feel drier due to the lack of oxygen flow.

Colored contacts are generally safe for your eyes. However, when colored contacts are bought and used without prescription and proper handling, these may pose adverse effects on your eyes. Contact lenses come in different sizes and specifications, designed to cater to various eye sizes and prescriptions. Since they aren’t “free-size” devices, your prescription plays an important role in ensuring that you are getting the colored contacts suited for your eyes.

Prescription, lens quality, and contact lens care go hand-in-hand to guarantee a safe experience with colored contact lenses. Eye scratches may occur just by using poorly fitting lenses. To protect yourself from unsafe colored contact lenses, certain factors such as the contact lens vendor, brand/manufacturer and certifications (eg. USA FDA, ISO, and CE), and contact lens specifications should be considered before purchasing them.

As a general rule of thumb, coloured contact lenses can be worn up to 8 hours a day. Some contact lenses now are specially designed to last up to 14-16 hours, but it is always important to cross-check this with your doctor and with the actual product you have. Always remember to remove your contacts before going to bed. Regardless of what your friends tell, you, sleeping in any contact lenses can cause irritation as well as other issues.

Fifty percent of the efficiency and wearability of every pair of contacts depends on you. It is of utmost importance that you adhere to recommended guidelines for hygiene and wear cycles (called compliance). To maximize your color contacts experience, here are basic wear and care tips to keep in mind:

Health and safety should always be prime priority. Contact lenses produced and developed by reputable manufacturers are the obvious choice. To help gauge the efficacy and quality of contact lenses, include international health certifications from recognized authorities like the FDA (each country has their own national health authority), ISO and CE (European health authority) in your checklist before purchasing. This ensures the lenses were made in factories or by companies that are inspected every year for cleanliness and compliance and are using certified, medical grade ingredients. Of course, such certification is not cheap to manufacturers; therefore, it's safe to say that any lenses being sold at questionable prices come with questionable safety.

Wondering how safe our contact lenses are? We make sure all our lenses have global health approvals. Our Authenticity and Safety promise is stated here.

The standard price of prescription colored contacts mainly varies according to the type of contacts (eg. daily lenses, silicone hydrogel lenses, costume lenses or circle lenses) and the manufacturer/brand. Colored contacts are commonly priced at 24 USD to 54 USD.

Just like how colored contact lenses are priced higher than clear lenses, contacts specifically made to correct astigmatism (toric lenses) are sold at a higher price point than lenses made to correct nearsightedness (myopia) or farsightedness (hyperopia). Toric lenses are usually priced at 49 USD to 70 USD.

Recently, there have been a large number of online marketplaces selling color contact lenses at absurdly low prices – to the tune of 3-5 USD per pair. We caution you to exercise your own judgment when purchasing lenses from dubious sources. If it feels too good to be true, it probably is. From a manufacturer's perspective, it would be extremely difficult to comply with any safety/hygiene regulation and still make a profit at that price point.

Here are the top 5 bestselling colored contact lens brands to get you started in choosing your next pair:

• GEO Medical
• Alcon Freshlook
• i-Dol/i-Sha/i-Girl
• EyeCandys
• Pink Label

2024 is the year of natural, young, and fresh looks. Along with the no make-up make-up and the MLBB looks, my-eyes-but-better is hitting the trend. For light-colored eyes, a simple pair of tinted or enhancement contacts can easily do the job. On the other hand, choosing the perfect colored contacts for dark eyes may be tricky especially for those who want to go for blues or greys. To achieve the targeted blue or grey eyes, opaque colored contacts are the best choice, with smaller graphic diameters to mimic the natural eye size.

Here is a shortlist of the contacts trends that exude the perfect au naturel eye look:

Yes, there’s a surgery (EEK) for everything in the 21st century! Iris Implant Surgery is a one-time surgery to permanently change the color of your eyes. The procedure was originally created as a treatment for eye injuries and genetic conditions that result in part or all of the iris being missing. It has recently been recognized as an elective cosmetic procedure - which (unsurprisingly) has been a bit controversial.

Iris implant surgery entails inserting a folded artificial iris implant made of biocompatible colored medical grade silicone into a slit made onto the cornea. This silicone implant is then unfolded and adjusted accordingly. This is incredibly invasive and comes with several possible negative side effects and complications.

This procedure has been performed in Mexico, Central America, Africa, and India has experienced its fair share of backlash due to the unwanted effects some have experienced after undergoing the surgery. In 2018, the United States FDA approved its first ever prosthetic iris: the CustomFlex Artificial Iris, intended to focus on individuals needing the procedure for medical purposes as opposed to purely cosmetic causes.

The surgery is not currently legal or recommended in the United States. US citizens travel to countries such as Mexico, Panama, and India to undergo the procedure. In many cases, it is marketed as a simple surgery, similar to cataract removal. The complications and risks are downplayed giving interested parties a false sense of security.

"This is inaccurate as well as misleading," says ophthalmologist James Tsai, M.D., a clinical spokesperson for the American Academy of Ophthalmology. "We strongly caution people against having cosmetic iris implant surgery."

Possible complications of iris implant surgery include:

• Moderate to total loss of vision
• Cataracts
• Corneal injury
• Uveitis, where the inflammation causes redness, pain, and blurred vision
• Glaucoma

A medical company in Laguna Beach, California now offers a non-invasive procedure that uses lasers to destroy the dark pigments of the iris to display a blue hue. While this is preferable to surgery for many due to enjoying fewer risks, it is still a permanent change to the color of your eyes. As for us - we aren’t sure we’re ready for that kind of commitment! If you decide that a permanent change is what you desire, we simply suggest you consider these options carefully so as not to regret the decision later after making an irreversible change - and possibly suffering the effects of complications!

Color contact lenses are available as a much less-expensive, more temporary solution to changing the color of your iris. And you can change your hue multiple times a day! The only limit to the looks you can create is your imagination!

The global market for contact lenses is expected to grow to USD 13.9 billion by 2032 from an estimated USD 5.4 billion in 2022. That is a projected CAGR of 9.92% over the next five years! An increase in the market for colored contact lenses may not sound exciting if you’re not invested in the stock market. But here’s what it means for you and your gorgeous eyes -- increased INNOVATION! With a growth in the market, there will be more and more options for you to choose from. This means new colors, new styles, and new effects!

We are sure you’ll agree - watching and being the first of your friends to try the latest trends in a growing industry is much more exciting than committing to a permanent change in eye color that could come with several potentially-painful complications and side effects!

Let us give you a head start with our finest recommendations below. Adventures await you in the world of colored contacts!