Summer Looks Good On You: SABEN‘s New Eyewear Collection
Five new frames, a couple of returning favourites and plenty of personality. SABEN‘s latest eyewear collection has arrived just in time for long lunches, summer weddings and wherever the honeymoon takes you next.
There are certain accessories that seem to take on greater importance the moment summer arrives. A great pair of sunglasses is one of them. They can change the mood of an outfit in seconds, rescue the morning after a particularly good wedding and, unlike many of our more frivolous fashion purchases, tend to earn their place in the wardrobe year after year.
Which brings us rather neatly to SABEN‘s Spring/Summer 2026 eyewear collection, SUMMER LOOKS GOOD ON YOU, the New Zealand brand’s largest eyewear release to date. Five new silhouettes join two returning favourites in fresh colourways, building on SABEN‘s first foray into eyewear.
And there is a definite sense of fun to this chapter.
Photographed by Karen Inderbitzen-Waller, the accompanying campaign taps into that deliciously optimistic point in the year when the evenings stretch out, calendars become increasingly social, and sunglasses seem to stay permanently within reach. Four different faces front the imagery, each bringing a different energy to the frames, against vivid blue skies and unapologetically summery styling.
Seven ways to see summer
The collection itself moves comfortably between decades rather than committing to one particular mood.
Cara is perhaps the easiest place to begin. A softer interpretation of SABEN‘s bestselling Sloane, it has a subtle cat-eye lift that feels polished without becoming overly retro. Rory takes us firmly into the ’90s with a smaller, pared-back silhouette, while Marlo heads back another couple of decades with a proper ’70s aviator shape, keyhole bridge and gold metal detailing.
Then there is Cosmo, round and retro with an easy everyday quality, and Dylan, SABEN‘s more directional take on the shield aviator, bringing a little ’60s attitude and a stronger fashion edge.
Two familiar faces also return. The oversized, hexagonal Remi brings back its bold ’70s proportions, while Sloane, already something of a signature for the brand, reappears in tortoise, olive and black.
What we particularly like is the breadth. Sunglasses are deeply personal, and what looks brilliant on one face can feel completely wrong on another. By moving from petite ’90s shapes through to cat-eyes, rounds, aviators and oversized frames, SABEN has created a collection that feels less prescriptive and much more about finding your character.
Made for more than one summer
There is substance behind the styling, too. Each pair is crafted from 100 per cent natural acetate and finished with SABEN‘s signature pale gold-plated hardware, while CR39 lenses are designed to keep the frames lightweight and clear. Every style is also prescription-ready, something founder Roanne Jacobson herself makes use of.
For the Together Journal world, we can see these travelling particularly well.
Sunglasses have quietly become part of modern occasion dressing. Think the long lunch before the wedding, a sun-drenched ceremony, cocktails the following afternoon, or the inevitable airport photographs as you disappear on honeymoon. They are also one of those accessories that can bring personality to a bridal look without asking too much of it.
Our advice? Don’t feel obliged to choose the quiet pair simply because you’re wearing white. An oversized ’70s frame, an olive acetate or a slightly sharper cat-eye can be exactly the counterpoint a beautifully simple wedding look needs. And for grooms and guests, the same rule applies: eyewear is an easy place to introduce a little individuality.
That is perhaps what SABEN gets particularly right with this collection. There isn’t one prescribed version of summer here. There are seven rather different personalities waiting to be tried on.
And really, choosing the one that feels most like you is half the fun.
For more information, visit saben.co.nz and @sabenltd
