The Oculus is an independent optometry studio and curator of the world's most inventive eyewear, with showrooms in De Waterkant, Cape Town and at The Lookout Centre in Plettenberg Bay. We pair comprehensive eyecare with a curated collection of fifteen ateliers from Berlin, Tokyo, Antwerp, Paris, Toulouse, Amsterdam, Bruges, Budapest, Petrópolis, Detroit, Milan, the Tyrolean Alps and our own workshop in Cape Town.
Every frame in the studio is chosen for its craft, character and the story it carries onto the face. Every eye examination is conducted with the time and equipment a thoughtful prescription deserves. Our in-house brand Zero21 is handcrafted in Cape Town, with each model named after an iconic street of the Mother City.
Our Brands
Fifteen ateliers, chosen one frame at a time. Each brand has its own room in the studio — below is a short introduction to the makers we represent.
Born from a love story in Toulouse
Two opticians fell in love and wanted to change the way the world sees eyewear. In 1984, frustrated by bland frames, Anne began sketching and Valentin made prototypes. Forty years on, every collection is still designed in Toulouse and handcrafted in France's Jura region — expressive shapes and fearless colour for people who wear their personality on their face.
1972 · 1985 — Two dates, one vision
In 1972, Kensuke Ishizu — the godfather of Japanese prep — declared that eyewear was fashion. In 1985, Eyevan debuted in California and Madonna wore the frames. Revived in 2013, each pair is still hand-drawn and crafted by Sabae artisans using surgical-grade titanium, mineral glass and plant-based Japanese acetate cured for months.
Mykita — Berlin, Germany
Handcrafted in the Mykita Haus
In 2003, four friends set up a workshop in a former Berlin kindergarten — My Kita. They invented screwless hinges cut from flat steel and folded into form. Today over 350 people handcraft every frame under one roof. From 3D-printed MYLON to recycled-steel Decades, Mykita proves that engineering and expression are the same thing.
Suzy Glam — Amsterdam, Netherlands
Sculpted on the face, not sketched on paper
Optician Etienne Frederiks and jewellery designer Susanne Klemm never draw a frame on screen. Since 2013 they have sculpted every model by hand in three dimensions — shaped, fitted and refined directly on the face in their Amsterdam atelier. Faceted like gemstones, each frame carries the depth and balance that only a sculptor's hands can give.
Matière et lumière
Parisian artisan lunetier Lucas wraps frames in leather, silk, stone and feather — noble materials borrowed from haute couture, architecture and fine jewellery. Each pair is precision-cut and hand-finished in his Paris atelier, transforming a simple silhouette into a sensory object. Silmo d'Or awarded.
Four generations, one vision
The Hoet family has practised optics in Bruges since the 1880s. Fourth-generation Patrick Hoet created the world's first 3D-printed titanium eyewear — laser-fusing titanium powder layer by layer into structures impossible to achieve by hand. Impossibly light, structurally daring, and unmistakably Belgian.
Vinylize — Budapest, Hungary
Three frames from one record
Zachary Tipton's eyesight was failing. Experimenting with plastics, he discovered that a single vinyl record could yield three frames. In 2004, he and brother Zoltan founded Tipton Eyeworks in Budapest. Each frame fuses upcycled grooves with cellulose acetate — over three tonnes of vinyl reborn every year. Worn by Elton John, Sir Richard Branson and Elvis Costello.
Matsuda — Tokyo · Sabae
Where tradition meets transformation
Fashion designer Mitsuhiro Matsuda founded the house in 1967, inspired by Art Deco ornament and Gothic architecture. Today thirteen master artisans in Sabae devote 71 hours and over 250 steps to each frame — forging titanium, sterling silver and 18-karat gold into sculptural forms. From Beetlejuice to Terminator, from Brad Pitt to the red carpet.
Where Milan meets Tokyo
After decades perfecting frame design, Alessandro Fedalto launched Miga Studio in 2017 to unite two craft traditions. Mazzucchelli acetate dried for 75 days is machined from monoblock plates in Italy. Ultra-light Japanese titanium is shaped into bold architectural profiles. The result is eyewear inspired by modernist buildings — timeless structure, future form.
Rolf — Tirol, Austria
Crafted by nature, shaped by hand
Roland Wolf mills frames from Alpine wood, real stone, buffalo horn and bean-based polymers high in the Tyrolean Alps. No screws, no glue, no plastic. His proprietary Flexlock hinge and 100% natural materials have earned over 40 international design awards including the Silmo d'Or. Each frame weighs as little as eight grams and carries the grain of the mountain.
Kuboraum — Berlin, Germany
Dreamed in Berlin, handmade in Italy
Kuboraum means "cubic room" — a space where you feel free to be yourself. In 2012, Italian sculptor Livio Graziottin and anthropologist Sergio Eusebi turned a former post office between east and west Berlin into a studio for masks, not glasses. Handcrafted in Italy with no visible logo, each frame accentuates the wearer's identity. Worn by Oprah, Elton John and Kate Winslet.
Lapima — Petrópolis, Brazil
Wearable sculpture from the mountains above Rio
Named from "lapidar" — to cut a precious stone — Lapima is handcrafted in Petrópolis, the old imperial city in the mountains above Rio. Bold, curvaceous silhouettes draw from Oscar Niemeyer's architecture and Brazil's tropical palette. Each frame is sculpted from exclusive Mazzucchelli acetate and hand-polished to a jewel-like finish. Worn by Beyoncé, Rihanna and Lady Gaga.
T Henri — Detroit · Sabae
199 pieces. 250 steps. Zero compromise.
Tyler Henri sold exotic cars until he noticed his wealthiest client wore mass-produced sunglasses. Now each frame is hand-drawn by Henri and crafted in Sabae, Japan through 250 artisan steps. Limited to 199 pieces per colourway, adorned with 18-karat gold and sterling silver. When a colour sells out, it is never made again.
Theo — Antwerp, Belgium
Glasses for human beings
In the mid-1980s, Belgian optometrists Wim Somers and Patrick Hoet grew tired of bland spectacles and created something radically different. Named after Wim's son, Theo is an anagram of Hoet — and a declaration that eyewear should bring happiness. Over 35 years of bold shapes, whimsical humour and unapologetic colour, handcrafted for faces that want to start conversations.
Zero21 — Cape Town, South Africa
Cape Town's essence in every frame
Zero21 is our own. Each model is named after an iconic Cape Town street — every frame a love letter to the Mother City's texture, energy and light. Handcrafted in limited editions right here in Cape Town, these are frames for people who carry the city's spirit wherever they go. Custom-made eyewear, born where the mountain meets the sea.
Zero21 — Our In-House Eyewear, Handcrafted in Cape Town
Zero21 is The Oculus's own frame line, named after the 021 dialling code of the city where it is made. Every Zero21 frame carries the name of an iconic Cape Town street, suburb or landmark — Adderley, Bree, Kloof, Long, Whale, Higgovale, Roeland, Ocean View — so the collection reads as a map of the Mother City. The streets are the catalogue.
What sets Zero21 apart is rare: The Oculus designs and mills its own frames. Almost every optical house buys frames in and adds a name; Zero21 is made from scratch in Cape Town. Each frame is sculpted from a solid block of Italian acetate at our De Waterkant atelier, machined start to finish — the frame shape, the lens groove and the hinge pockets — in one continuous in-house process.
The four Zero21 sculpting methods
A street name fixes the lens shape; a sculpting method is the way the front face of the frame is carved. The same shape becomes four distinct objects — not colour variants.
- Bevelicious — the front face is cut with stepped bevel planes around the rim, so the edges are faceted and catch the light. Eight-millimetre acetate, finished on a hidden acetate barrel hinge.
- Classic Zero21 — a single smooth, rounded curve with no steps, the thinnest of the four in the hand. Hung on a metal barrel hinge with two visible screws.
- Rivages — the entire front face is terraced into four to five concentric steps that follow the frame's outline, like contour lines or sedimentary shores. Rivages is French for shores or banks, and it is the most demanding method to machine.
- Convexus — the front face bows outward in one continuous arc, so light travels across the surface in an unbroken sweep rather than breaking at an edge.
Materials and craft
- Italian acetate milled in-house on The Oculus's own machines at the De Waterkant atelier.
- One-piece manufacturing — frame shape, lens groove and hinge pockets machined as a single job, not assembled from bought-in parts.
- A 72-name acetate colour library, from Smokey Brown and Antique Gold to California Red and Shocking Pink.
- Two hinge systems — hidden acetate barrel hinges, or metal hinges with the screws left honestly on show.
- Every model tied to the Cape Town street it is named after.
Frequently asked questions about Zero21
- What does a Zero21 frame cost?
- Pricing is on request — contact The Oculus for a quote. We will walk you through frame, sculpting method and lens options before you commit.
- Does The Oculus really make Zero21 frames in-house?
- Yes. Each Zero21 frame is milled from a solid block of Italian acetate on our own machines at the De Waterkant atelier. Most eyewear is bought in and rebranded; we design and manufacture our own frames from scratch, which is unusual for an optometry studio.
- Why are the frames named after Cape Town streets?
- Zero21 is named after Cape Town's 021 dialling code, so every model takes the name of a city street, suburb or landmark — Adderley, Kloof, Long, Whale and the rest. The collection is laid out as a map of the city.
- What is the difference between Bevelicious, Classic Zero21, Rivages and Convexus?
- They are four ways of carving the same lens shape. Bevelicious has faceted bevel edges, Classic Zero21 is one smooth curve, Rivages is terraced into concentric steps, and Convexus bows outward in a single arc.
- Are Zero21 frames available as sunglasses?
- Yes — most shapes work as both optical and sun, with tint and lens options to suit. Speak to us in the studio.
- Can a Zero21 frame be repaired or remade?
- Because we mill them ourselves, we can adjust, refinish and in many cases recut a frame in-house. Bring it in and we will take a look.
Service Areas
The Oculus serves Cape Town and the wider Western Cape from our De Waterkant showroom, including the City Bowl, Sea Point, Green Point, V&A Waterfront, Camps Bay, Clifton, Constantia, Hout Bay, Bishopscourt, Newlands, Rondebosch, Claremont, the Atlantic Seaboard and the Southern Suburbs.
Our Plettenberg Bay showroom serves the Garden Route, including Knysna, Wilderness, Sedgefield, Keurboomstrand, Nature's Valley and the surrounding coastal communities.