Eyewear Store Near Me on Fairfax Avenue, Los Angeles: L.A. Eyeworks

L.A. Eyeworks now sells its frames from 900 North Fairfax Avenue, at the corner of Willoughby Avenue and two blocks north of Melrose, in a pair of buildings painted entirely in platinum silver. The store is open Monday to Saturday from 10 am to 6 pm, and customers park free on site through the Willoughby entrance. If your eyewear store near me search wants frames with a point of view, this is the Los Angeles label that invented the attitude.

The brand's About page dates the beginning precisely: September 9, 1979, when Barbara McReynolds and Gai Gherardi opened a single storefront on Melrose Avenue. That first shop, which the company still calls the Mothership, became a meeting point for artists, musicians and designers, and the two founders started drawing their own frames for the people who walked in. Both founders died in 2025, Gai Gherardi in March and Barbara McReynolds in May.

The move to Fairfax was announced on the brand's news page as a new retail campus. Architects Frank Escher and Ravi GuneWardena of Escher GuneWardena Architecture designed two buildings joined by a pergola-covered walkway. Walls, ceilings and exteriors carry an immersive glaze of platinum silver paint, so the frames are the only real color in the room. The second building, nicknamed The Lens, holds an event space and a small shop for objects.

Since 1981 the label has run a portrait campaign photographed by Greg Gorman, pairing famous and not-so-famous faces with its frames under the line that a face is like a work of art and deserves a great frame. The campaign explains the shop floor. Staff are not trying to make you look neutral; they are trying to find the shape that makes your face look like itself, only more so.

That means the first frame an associate hands you may be louder than the one you had in mind. Give it a minute in the mirror before you say no. The frames here are drawn in Los Angeles and lean toward sculptural acetate, strong brow lines and saturated color, though there are quieter metal and clear pieces on the shelves for people who prefer a softer look.

The brand's own FAQ states that frames typically start at $350, and many styles sit above that. There is no budget shelf and no rack of discount pieces on a normal day, so plan for a considered purchase rather than an impulse buy. Prescription lenses are priced on top of the frame, and the associate will explain lens options once you have narrowed the choice to one or two styles.

The exception is the annual Big Sale. The 2026 edition runs from Thursday, October 22 to Sunday, October 25, and the official news page says reservations are required. Book early if you want a slot on the first morning, when the widest range of colors is on the tables, and treat the sale as a chance to buy a second pair rather than your only one.

According to the announcement of the Fairfax campus, the store has an in-house finishing lab for precision lens work and custom tinting. That is the reason to buy prescription glasses here rather than taking the frame elsewhere: the lab can shape lenses to the brand's own frame curves and mix a sun tint that matches the acetate. Bring a current written prescription, since the store sells and fits eyewear rather than running an eye clinic.

For older pairs, the FAQ advises bringing L.A. Eyeworks frames to an L.A. Eyeworks retailer and notes that replacement parts can be ordered. A loose hinge or a lost nose pad on a frame bought years ago is worth a visit, and owners of vintage pieces often come in just to have them tuned. Expect the staff to ask about the frame's age and color code, which is printed inside the temple.

Start by telling the associate which frame you wear now and what you dislike about it, whether it slides down, feels too heavy or looks too timid. Then try three very different shapes in a row: a thick acetate, a fine metal and a clear or translucent frame. Step out under the pergola between tries, because the silver walls inside bounce light around and natural shade gives a truer sense of each color against your skin.

Weekday mornings right after the 10 am opening are the quietest, and Tuesday or Wednesday is the safest choice. Saturdays bring more shoppers from the Melrose and Fairfax streets, and the store closes at 6 pm, so arrive by mid-afternoon if you need a fitting. Sunday is not on the regular schedule, which makes it a poor day to plan around. Our honest view: skip the sale week if you want a long, unhurried consultation.

Two blocks south, Melrose Avenue is lined with streetwear and vintage shops, and on Sundays the Melrose Trading Post fills the grounds of Fairfax High School with flea-market stalls. Head the other way down Fairfax and you reach Canter's Deli, the Jewish deli that has long anchored the street, and further on the Original Farmers Market at Third Street for lunch at the produce stalls.

Metro bus Line 217 runs along Fairfax Avenue and Line 10 runs along Melrose, so the campus is reachable without a car. A good half day starts with a coffee on Melrose, a frame session on Fairfax before noon, and a walk south to the Farmers Market while the lab finishes your lenses. If the store is full when you arrive, take that walk first and come back after lunch, when the morning rush has gone.

Address: 900 North Fairfax Avenue, Los Angeles, CA 90046, at Willoughby Avenue. Hours: Monday to Saturday, 10 am to 6 pm. Parking: free on site for customers, entrance on Willoughby. Frames typically start at $350 according to the brand's FAQ. Services: in-house finishing lab for prescription lenses and custom tints, repairs and replacement parts. Big Sale 2026: October 22 to 25, reservations required.