Don’t Throw Them Away
- Practical Uses for Your Old Glasses
This post was last updated in 2023
Items like glasses can be such a dilemma to deal with once you are done using them – oftentimes it’s something so minor that makes the item no longer suitable for use, that it’s such a waste to throw them away. And even when they are broken and beyond repair, it seems a shame to throw them into landfill.
Surprisingly it is not entirely clear what you should do with eyewear once you are done using them – what your full range of options are. So I thought I would cover all the options in this blog post.
If you have old glasses and frames on hand, consider getting them repaired or you could upcycle damaged items into something new. You could sell or give away the frames online. If not, donating to the Lions Club is an option as they will ensure they are given to someone in need or recycled.
Here are these options again, with links to further information:
Also at the end of the blog post, you will also find the answers to the following related questions:
- Where can I donate old glasses in Australia?
- Which charity takes old glasses?
- Do opticians take old glasses for charity?
- How do I donate old glasses to charity?
Click to the option that most interests you or have a read through it all to discover an option to suit your needs.
1. Repair your frames or have new lenses fitted
If you have prescription glasses or sunglasses – doesn’t matter which – there are options you can consider to repair your glasses or modify them so they are suitable for use.
When it comes to lenses, scratches are a common problem. You can try some home remedies to fix up minor scratches as suggested by Wiki and other life hackers offering helpful advice: https://www.wikihow.com/Fix-Scratched-Glasses
However, there are warnings that these fixes could remove the protective exterior layer on the lenses. And rarely do these “fixes” work. They are a temporary fix (at best).
Don’t believe me? I found this video which shows the problems with home remedies:
So if you have scratched lenses, the best thing to do is to take your glasses to an optician. They should be able to tell you if something can be done to repair your lenses.
If they advise the lenses can’t be fixed, don’t jump straight to buying a whole new pair of glasses. We want to be able to reuse any frames that are in working condition – and it is possible to do this through a process called reglazing.
Reglazing is a fancy name for fitting new prescription lenses in existing frames. Most opticians can do this for you.
Not all frames are suitable for reglazing, but it is an option worth considering. If you want more information on this, read this blog post: Sustainable Choices for Your Eyewear – Your Options Covered
Getting new lenses for sunglasses is also an option. More about this can be found here: Sustainable Sunglasses – Know What to Look Out For
When it comes to damaged frames there are some at-home solutions that work a charm.
Here’s a brilliant video that addresses some common problems and provides useful, tested solutions:
Otherwise, take your frames to an optician and see what they can do.
If you need to buy new frames and you are happy with the current design, see if the manufacturer will sell their frames without lenses – most eyewear stores can offer this to you. Then it’s a matter of fitting your old lenses into the new frames – that is often easy to do whether you have metal or plastic frames.
If you decide you want a completely new design but still want to use the perfectly good lenses from your old glasses, your options are limited. As covered in Sustainable Choices for Your Eyewear – Your Options Covered, it is possible to reshape lenses to fit into different frames but not many opticians provide this service. And if they do, it can be a costly service.
You may need to buy entirely new frames with lenses in this scenario.
In terms of what to do with the broken frames or scratched-up lenses that can’t be repaired, keep reading below.
2. Get creative and reuse or upcycle your glasses
Lenses all scratched up or frames too bent out of shape and impossible to wear? Please don’t throw them away!
It might be worth your while to hang onto a pair as a spare. A spare pair of prescription glasses in the house can be helpful if you’ve happened to misplace your current pair. It can tide you over until you can get to an optician to get a replacement pair.
A spare pair of sunglasses is always useful since sunglasses do tend to get lost often and it’s good to have a (dodgy) spare on hand to cover you until you get something new.
But if you have enough spares or your old glasses are not in a condition to be worn (even temporarily), then consider these reuse and upcycling ideas:
(1) Dress up – use them in costumes for Halloween or other opportunities to dress up. They can come in handy if you have kids – glasses are a must if they want to dress up as Harry Potter for book week. Just make sure you pop any prescription lenses out before they are used this way.
(2) Pretend play – pass them on to your kids or kids in your family if they like playing with dolls or teddy bears. They can use them to dress up their favourite toys. Or if they like pretend play (as most kids do) they will appreciate a pair of glasses so they can play doctor or something similar. Again, make sure you pop any prescription lenses out before they are used this way.
(3) Turn them into jewellery – if you look at upcycling or reusing eyewear ideas on Pinterest, you will come across various ways people have reused lenses and frames as jewellery
(4) Create a lighting feature – another common idea is to use eyewear to make a chandelier or light feature, like the one shown below
For more ideas, check out this blog post which collates pictures from various sources: https://ecogreenlove.com/2017/04/29/rrr-eyeglasses/
And if you are not into dress up, don’t have kids that need a pair of glasses and DIY is not your thing STILL don’t throw your eyewear away!
3. Sell your glasses or give them away
If you are upgrading your glasses because you need to change your prescription or you have decided you needed some new frames since the old ones don’t suit you, then it is possible that your old frames are in good condition and are worthwhile selling.
But not all frames are suitable for resale. The frames need to be high-quality designer or vintage frames to sell well.
Brands that sell well include Guess, Prada, Kate Spade, Bailey Nelson and Ray Bans. This list does not cover all the brands that sell well, but it should give you an idea of the type of brands and the quality expected in the second-hand market.
As for vintage frames, frames made in the 1990s seem to sell well, as well as frames from the 1970s and 1960s.
I have found that vintage frames tend to have a market on Etsy, while eBay and Gumtree are great for all other types of frames.
There are some specialist retailers that sell vintage or second-hand frames, so you could contact them to see if they are interested in purchasing frames from you.
Vintage Specs is one online store operating in Australia that may be worth contacting: https://www.vintagespecs.com.au/
If your frames are not the type that would sell well or they are not in a condition to be worn, you can give them away – yes even damaged items! There might be someone out there that would be interested in your damaged items for an upcycling project they have in mind.
Take some photos, post your item on Facebook Marketplace and list them for free. Then repost the listing to various freecycling, upcycling or buy nothing groups in your area.
This is one of the best ways to (hopefully!) keep your old frames out of landfill.
4. Donate them to a charity for reuse
In 2019 the World Health Organization (WHO) reported approximately 2.2 billion people have vision impairments or blindness worldwide and at least 1 billion of these cases could have been prevented or have had their progression delayed if they had access to eyeglasses or corrective surgery. From this report, I think it is safe to assume that a significant portion of the world’s population does not have proper eyewear.
One charity program filling the gap on a scale like no other, is the Lions Club Recycle for Sight program. They collect used eyewear and distributed them to those in need.
According to their website, over the last 26 years in operation in Australia, they have distributed over 7 million pairs of glasses to those in need.
So, if there is one charity to donate your glasses to it would be the Lions Club.
You can send your glasses to the following address:
Reply Paid 3021
Lions Recycle for Sight
PO Box 3021
Reply Paid 3021
Lions Recycle for Sight
PO Box 3021
CLONTARF MDC 4019
Don’t send the glass case or pouch – just wrap them in bubble wrap or put them in a padded bag.
You can also take your glasses to various collection points around Australia. The Lions Club has partnered with a number of organisations to set up collection points, making it easy for people to drop off their eyewear in person.
Specsavers is one of their partner organisations. Each store should be able to take your old eyewear to pass onto the Lions Club. You can find a list of store locations here: https://www.specsavers.com.au/stores/full-store-list
HCF is another partner organisation. They have collection points at each of their branches, which are listed here: https://www.hcf.com.au/locations/find-a-branch
There are smaller optical and eyewear stores that have also partnered with Lions Club – too numerous to mention. So it is worth asking the optical store you normally frequent to see if they collect glasses for the Lions Club.
Other charities that accept donations include the Red Cross, The Salvation Army and St Vincent de Pauls. There are not bad places to donate items – I got my last pair of sunglasses from Vinnies and presumably there are other buyers like me out there, looking for frames in second-hand stores.
If this is an easier option for you, donate to these stores. Before you donate, make sure the frames are not damaged and are still good to use. And hand the items over the counter instead of throwing them in a bag with other donations – you don’t want them to be damaged before they make it onto the shop floor!
5. Give them to an organisation that can recycle glasses
When it comes to recycling eyewear in Australia, the options are surprisingly limited. Glasses are typically made from recyclable material however because it is a mixed material product, it can be difficult to recycle. Only the Lions Club can help in this respect.
Their charity program not only accepts fit-for-wear glasses, but they also take damaged eyewear for recycling.
Lions Club has arrangements with organisations that will buy the damaged eyewear and take the materials for recycling. The money the Lions Club receives from selling this recyclable material goes towards community projects. So your donation of damaged eyewear contributes towards this as well.
More information about the Lions Club and how to get the glasses to them was provided in the section above.
For more information on recycling glasses, check out the blog post Recycling Prescription Glasses and Sunglasses – Your Options Covered. In this blog post you will find specific information about recycling frames and lenses.
Another option to consider is to check whether the brand you purchased your frames from has a take-back service. Very few companies offer this service – it’s only companies with a sustainability focus that tend to take back old frames so they can recycle the material. There are some sunglass brands that do offer this service, as covered here: 9 Sustainable Sunglass Brands Worth Checking Out
So if you have old frames, there are options to avoid throwing them into landfill. There are things you could do yourself such as repairing damaged eyewear or upcycling damaged items into something more interesting. You could sell fit-for-wear glasses or give them away for someone else to upcycle them into something new. And if none of these options work out for you, donating to the Lions Club will ensure your old frames are either given to someone in need or it is recycled to make something new.
xxx Tahsin
FAQs:
Where can I donate old glasses in Australia?
In Australia, the best place to donate old glasses is to the Lions Club Recycle for Sight Program. You can mail your old frames directly to them or you can drop them off at a Specsavers store or HCF branch or other organisations that have partnered with the Lions Club.
The program takes both fit-for-wear glasses, to pass onto those in need, as well as damaged eyewear, for recycling.
More information about their program can be found here: https://lionsclubs.org.au/our-impact/recycle-for-sight-australia/
Which charity takes old glasses?
The Lions Club Recycle for Sight program is the best charity to donate glasses to – they take fit for wear frames to pass onto those in need and they also take damaged frames for recycling. Other charities like the Red Cross, St Vincent de Pauls and the Salvation Army also accept eyewear donations.
However, items donated to these organisations need to be suitable for resale and it is unlikely to impact the number of lives that the Lions Club Recycle for Sight program can.
Do opticians take old glasses for charity?
Opticians will take old glasses for charity, provided have partnered with the Lions Club Recycle for Sight program. The Lions Club has partnered with a number of opticians around Australia that act as collection points for old glasses that will be passed onto those in need overseas.
Specsavers is one of the largest eyewear retailers and they have a number of optometrists employed at their stores. They are the most common collection points for eyewear that are eventually passed onto the Lions Club to be given to those in need. This is the best option for most people wanting to donate used glasses to charity.
Specsavers is one of the largest eyewear retailers and they have a number of optometrists employed at their stores. They are the most common collection points for eyewear that are eventually passed onto the Lions Club to be given to those in need. This is the best option for most people wanting to donate used glasses to charity.
How do I donate old glasses to charity?
You can donate old glasses to charity by either mailing them directly to the Lions Club or by dropping them off at one of their collection points around Australia. Specsavers stores and HCF branches are common collection points. You can also drop them off at second-hand stores as a donation.
If you want to mail them to the Lions Club, who will ensure they are passed onto those in need overseas, your glasses (without the case) can be mailed to: Reply Paid 3021, Lions Recycle for Sight, PO Box 3021, CLONTARF MDC 4019
After more information? You may be interested in....
Sustainable Sunglasses – Know What to Look Out For – learn about the different options available to make your sunglass purchase a sustainable one.
9 Sustainable Sunglass Brands Worth Checking Out – for a list of Australian brands making sunglasses from sustainable materials and a summary of the pros and cons of each.
Sustainable Choices for Your Eyewear – Your Options Covered – for information on reusing old frames and lenses and where to get glasses second-hand.
Replacing New Lenses in Your Old Frames – Is it Worth it? – for further information about getting new lenses into your existing frames, in particular, how much this will cost
7 Sustainable Eyewear Brands Worth Checking Out – for a list of Australian brands making prescription glasses from sustainable materials.
Plant-Based Sunglasses – What Are They Made From Really? – read this if you want to know what “plant-based” sunglasses really mean and what makes them a sustainable option.
Recycled Plastic Sunglasses – Innovations Worth Supporting – learn about the types of recycled plastics used in sunglasses and the different brands that sell this sustainable option.
A Close Look At Bamboo Sunglasses – Sustainable or Not? – for a great overview of bamboo as a material source, allowing you to judge whether it is a sustainable option or not.
Recycled Metal Sunglasses – From Waste to Wearable – discover the unusual source materials used in recycled metal sunglasses and the studies that show they are a sustainable option.
