Leinz Eyewear // From fashion house to private independent brand

Leinz eyewear is an independent eyewear brand created by the infamous eyewear designer Beate Leinz from Berlin with fashionable style and personal touch. Beate gave us some background on how she started the latest project of her own eyewear label.

Inspiration: Breaking New Ground

As a designer, I was keen to create a completely new aesthetic. I also wanted to produce my distinctive style under an independent label. Then I came across the subject of “contrasts and hybrids”. What could be better than combining the old with the new? And the familiar with the future? And so I consistently applied this concept across all aspects of materiality, form, and manufacture. For two years I worked on the collection’s concept and after various technical hurdles and modifications, I am extremely thrilled to present the results.

Idea: Contrast

Acetate and polyamide (PA) – these are two synthetics with completely different properties. High gloss, transparency, and vibrancy meet functional high-tech materials, rough and matt. Acetate is a flat, sheet material that is reductively machined, while the printed PA material develops three-dimensionally via an additive manufacturing technique in the SLS 3D-printing process. What potential lies in such a contrast? And how can two such opposing materials be technically united?

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LEINZ face it. LZS501 si.ol ©S.Schründer_ 3172 high CS quer
LEINZ you and me.LZS003_br.br_3 kayo ©S.SchründerCS
LEINZ you and me.LZS003.re.sa_2_©S.SchründerCS

Design: Plug-in Construction

Due to technical material reasons, an adhesive bond was out of the question, so another solution had to be found. The design is based instead on innovative, plug-in construction, in which the individual components combine neatly. Simultaneously, the interconnection of the various sculptural elements characterizes the design and creates a contemporary and futuristic appearance.

Challenge: Perfect Fit

Acetate tends to shrink minimally as a material. However, the component’s fit accuracy is crucial for its stability. Hence, the underlying plug-in construction, which accommodates the required material tolerance so that the component’s connection is only made possible due to the lens inserted under tension. Additionally, a specially designed PA shell surrounds the acetate arm and spring hinge, so that no problems arise at the component connections and the frame is also graphically accentuated on the outside.

Collection: You And Me

The choice of materials makes the new frame light and comfortable to wear. The contrasting components and their properties, such as transparency versus mass, creates expressive, graphic accents that frame the eye strikingly while creating an elegant, sensuous look. Due to the construction of individual components, countless, diverse color combinations are possible.

Spectacles Case: Recycling

Naturally, every model comes with a matching case. The case is integral to the concept, is based on the frame’s style and is developed by the designer in the same vein. Utilizing modern recycling methods, leather waste from the production of work gloves is transformed to create a new material that is both durable and light, yet conveys the classic feel of cowhide.

Origin: Teamwork – Made in Europe

Ultimately, the particular design concept not only combines two dissimilar materials, but also traditional Italian craftsmanship with high-end German 3D-technology. Manufactured at various European locations, the components eventually fit together perfectly. Design and logistics – created and coordinated from Berlin.

Background: Craft, Art and Passion

Developing my brand LEINZ with its unusually courageous design approach builds on a wealth of experience. Following on from both a watchmaking and goldsmithing apprenticeship, I completed a degree in design and art. This led to my yearlong collaborations as a designer for various international eyewear brands. My most successful models and collections were created in the fashion house Prada and Miu Miu in Milan. From 2013, I developed a distinct and formative design for the then newly launched brand Yohji Yamamoto Eyewear, which quickly achieved considerable attention. In this way, I have repeatedly set industry trends by creating ground-breaking visions.


Free press release: Leinz eyewear

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