Fabulous Fanny's
Category: Eyewear & Opticians [Edit]
Neighborhood: Manhattan/East Village335 E 9th St
(between 1st Ave & 2nd Ave)
New York, NY 10003 (212) 533-0637
- Nearest Transit:
Astor Place (6)
1st Ave-14th St (L)
8th St-Broadway (R, W)
- Hours:
Mon-Sun 12:00 p.m.-8:00 p.m. - Price Range: $$
- Accepts Credit Cards: Yes
- Parking: Street
20 Reviews for Fabulous Fanny's
What a disappointment! I heard they have a nice selection of antique pince-nez eyewear so I contacted them by email on their website. No response. A week later I called and spoke with one of the owners. He promised to send me some pics of pince-nez from his stock and would later some glasses to me on approval. Very promising.
A month later and I had no response from Fanny's. I sent another email. No response. A few days later I placed another call and spoke with the same co-owner. More promises to send some picsbut I still have not received any contact from them.
I prefer to deal with more stable businesses. An incredible waste of time and energy.
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I love fabulous fanny's. I have bought three pairs of frames there, over probably 5 years at this point. The third pair, took three tries: Twice I bought a pair and exchanged them until I found the right one. I might write another review just because I want to do this place justice. These guys are so kind and friendly and ethical and invested in people having fabulous glasses! What could be better than that??? Seriously. Go. They're just nothing but good.
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This place is my heaven. Or something like it. I've been wanting vintage frames as long as I can remember - and in the beginning of the year, I walked in and knew I'd be there forever. I tried on frame after frame and couldn't decide! I fnally stumbled upon vintage designer frames. The two pairs I got set me back about $250 bucks - but hence is the price for vintage designer. I'm tempted to go back and get the pair I've got now in different colors. Someone stop me!
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Fanny's changed my life. With my first pair of reasonably priced, oversized vintage frames, I found the true Sadie S. - someone who my mother says is willing to submit to "voluntary disfigurement" but to whom hipsters instantly cede a certain measure of vague respect.
The selection is great, the prices are low, they let you linger and try as long as you like - and the optician in Chinatown whom they recommend is inexpensive and efficient.
FF's doesn't advertise, so they depend on the word-of-mouth produced by drive-by complimenting. I like to think I've sent a few customers, which is only fair as I learned of the place from an amazing woman I met on the subway years ago.
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If it weren't for one very pretentious worker, I would have really loved this place.
Upon entry, my girlfriend and I were greeted by a friendly shopgirl and shortly started perusing their great collection of frames. However, after being approached by the douchey fashionisto in question, he smarmily intimated that because of the pair of glasses I was wearing, I wouldn't find any frames that I liked in the store.
So, definitely check-out Fanny's, just not on a Sunday afternoon or whenever this fedora-wearing toolkit is walking the floors.
This is your place for vintage glasses. I would say it's even worth making a trip from outside the city to come here if you're in the market. It would be very difficult for you not to find a pair of frames that fit your style. They have everything! It's a lot of fun to look through the drawers and try on every odd ball (ok, and normal) pair you find. There are plenty of mirrors to check yourself out in. They vary in size and shape and angle so you feel like you have a good idea. This place got pretty crowded when I was there, but I didn't mind because everyone seemed to be having fun. I ended up with a pair of 60's military issue Romco's for $50. All of their frames are in great condition, but about 2/3rd of them are made of super heavy duty plastic so they're pretty hard to damage.
The people who work here are great! Very friendly, honest, and helpful without being annoying at all.
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The owner sent my friend's mother 5 pairs to try on and select from,all the way to Colorado!! We are not hipsters, not fierce, not rich...but he still did this for my friend and his mother. Nuff said. Totally unpretentious.
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I love Fabulous Fanny's. I've never even been to the actual store, but I found the Fabulous Fanny's website a few years back and have always wanted to get a pair of their frames, but was leery of buying frames online without trying them on first. I looked into it, and there is cheap priority shipping (up to 4 pairs) and a 30 day return policy, so I figured I didn't have much to lose. The first pair I ordered didn't work out, so I ordered two more frames. One of them turned out to be perfect for me, and I was able to return the other frames no questions asked. Ken gave me a call to make sure the ones I got worked out for me and refunded my money for the frames that didn't work. I recommend them Fabulous Fanny's all the time.
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Great vintage shop in the East Village! I'm a little, erm, thrifty (read: cheap), so I usually get my vintage frames online for about 1/4 the price they charge at Fanny's, but it's really fun to come in and look at all the crazy vintage eyeglass frames, clothes, and accessories they have.
It's perfect for me because my trademark is my Windsor frames, which often have metal temple cables, which tend to cut into the skin on your ears. But somehow, Fanny's has a stock of temple cable covers for those glasses, an item that hasn't been produced in probably decades. Every time my cats find my glasses on my desk and chew up the covers, it's back to Fanny's for me.
Really, really cool place. Really FABULOUS place too. Great people, great, quirky merch for those of you who, like me, don't like logos on the side of your glasses, and who think that fashion in the 20s REALLY was better. Fanny's is an ally in my struggle to bring back the fashion ethos that men should pretty much always be wearing a tie, so that's a great comfort to me out on the battlefront in the war against blue-jeans!
I bought my black French vintage frames here about a year ago and since so many people have asked me where I got them, I figured I should write a review. Fabulous Fanny's is an amazing place. It has a large and unique collection of frames. Furthermore, they are organized in a very clear and well categorized fashion. The place is small and gets fairly crowded, so be prepared to get bumped into while you are looking through the lower drawers and wait for someone to finish a section so you can browse.
The staff is super helpful. I had narrowed down my choices to about 5 very different frames and they gave me very honest opinions and brought it down to the one I now own. They can put in rhinestones (color of your choice) into many of the frames! I chose a lovely lavender shade and I love my glasses. The frames with the rhinestones put in ran me about 80 bucks and they said they would put them in again for free should the rhinestones ever fall out. Nice!
I had the lenses put in at Optical 88 on Mott St, a place they recommended. My lenses here were about 80 bucks and so for less than 200 I had an awesome pair of glasses. I have had these for over a year and so for those weary about buying vintage frames because they may not last long-these are durable. The frames at Fab Fanny's are in great shape, which is especially surprising because I am a notorious man handler.
This is definitely the place to go for vintage frames.
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This is the first store I frequented when I moved to the city. I walked in and it was like, kazaam, hello greatest place on earth!
The owners, Stan and Ken, are absolute dolls. I'm totally sad I never ran into Josh Hartnett there (sigh, secret crush). The frames are great, and only expect to drop some money if you're looking for vintage designer frames. The rest will run you $100 and under for awesome vintage frames, most with hand designed sparkles!
Go to their fave optomotrists at 88 Optical in Chinatown to make up the difference with the cheapest prescriptions around.
Also GREAT selection of vintage clothing! I've gotten some really pretty vintage tops and gloves :)
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Amazing vintage selection of glasses at affordable prices!
I LOVE this place. Cute jewelry and clothing selections too, but it's really all about the glasses.
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Fabulous indeed! I bought a pair of frames yesterday....cat eye with rhinestone for $85 and theyre sweeeeet. The ladies who work there are ever so helpful and honest.
They let me know where to go for my lenses on the cheap. Who knew buying glasses could be so fun!
Huge selection that ranges from $40-120ish There might be more expensive but that was my range. They also sell clothing but I didnt look so i cant judge.
If youre looking for something truly unique come here!
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The following conversation took place 4 weeks ago at Fanny's
Josh Hartnett: "Hey sorry can I get in there (referring to the men's vintage frame drawer)? I need to put these back"
Male Friend: "Sure." (double take, checks out Josh Hartnett's butt)
Me: (trying hard not to stare at Josh Hartnett through 1960s vintage frames)
As we were leaving....
The Old Saleslady: "Honey why don't you go for some designer like...Gucci...or Prada?"
Josh Hartnett: "Man, I don't feel like spending $700 on frames"
Other than this little exchange, I don't really need to add much to what has already been said in Sriram K's great review.
Stylish, affordable, unpretentious with celebrity sightings....what are you waiting for?
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This place rocks. Super extensive collection of vintage frames. Truthfully, much more extensive female collection than mens, but well more than I ever could have expected. Very affordable too. They only sell frames here, but they refer you to a place in Chinatown to handle the lense care. It works out amazingly.
The service is real too. I hate when people at eyeglass or sunglass stores tell me that everything looks 'Fabulous' on me. Its so fake! I put on a pair of glasses and the assistant assured me that it was all wrong: too big, too narrow, the legs stick out too much, covers up too much of my eyebrows etc. Cheersy for honesty!
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Truly original and great shop. Always worth a visit.
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Fabulous. First came across these folks when they had a stall at the Annex flea market. Prices have gone up since then, but still a kick-ass funky selection. Have not yet come across another vendor with such a good range of vintage eyewear.
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Fabulous Fanny's is the only place to go when you're in need of eyewear. This isn't Canal Streets folks, so don't expect to find J-Lo knock offs or aviator shades. Instead, rummage through drawers to find one of kind vintage frames from the 20s, as well as high end designers from the 80s. All the frames are close to or under $100. The catch? More often than not, tou've got to head over to the optometrist and have the lenses put in yourself. It's the price you pay for elegant, unique fashion.
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This is an awesome place for vintage glasses. You'll end up with a unique pair of frames and they will probably cost you less than a boring pair of glasses from your eye doctor would. You'll also have fun searching through all the frames for a pair that's perfect for you!
You can find a bargain on more than eyewear here. Browse through the street rack before venturing inside.
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