Alright guys, it’s time to talk eyewear.

Let’s talk about the increasingly popular Quay (pronounced ‘key’) sunglasses brand. I recently purchased a pair (or three), and wanted to share my experience with you all regarding the quality, price, shipping, and any other random thoughts I feel will help you in your decision of potentially purchasing these sunglasses.

My Quay Sunglasses

For quick reference, I purchased three pairs. Two of them are the same style, and one is a style I wouldn’t normally go for. I’m a huge fan of aviators, and when I saw Casey Holmes mention how the QUAYxSHAY aviators are oversized, I had to get them. It’s hard to find an oversized aviator that I like, so I went ahead and bought the same pair in two colors. I was torn on getting the second pair or picking up the striking style called Vesper instead, but I think I made the right decision for my personal style. (PS: These are the shades I’m wearing in my latest OOTD post)

• Vivienne in Black – This is the pair that started it all. I lost my black aviators so I wanted to get a new pair of black sunglasses.
• Vivienne in Gold – I was a little skeptical about this pair, but ordered it just to see how they looked in person. (I’m so glad I did, they’re gorgeous!) The frame itself is gold, but the lenses are rose.
• About Last Night in Black – This isn’t a pair I’d normally pick up, but pictures on Instagram made me fall in love with the style.

What I Like About Quay Sunglasses

Keep in mind this is specific to the ones that I purchased. Of the three, I expected to like one or two. I was pleasantly surprised that I really did end up loving all three. What’s funny is I went shopping for Quay Australia sunglasses specifically for the Vivenne Black pair, but Vivienne Gold is actually my favorite. I was a bit unsure about buying the gold because I thought they would look too similar to the Marc Jacobs pair I have, but the golds are totally different shades. Truthfully, I like these more…and they were a third of the price. Here’s a little more of what I like:

• The lenses are oversized
• Highly reflective lenses
• Gorgeous colors
• Wide variety of styles
• Style is written on the inside of the frame so you can’t forget it
• Comes with a magnetic soft case
• Affordable price for the quality

You may or may not know that I’m the person who would never spend a lot on sunglasses. I finally splurged on one pair by Marc Jacobs (and have my eye on one last pair from the same brand), but other than that I keep my sunglasses collection to Target and Forever 21 prices. The reason is because I have a habit of losing them. While these are certainly on the more affordable end, they were still high for my standards. After receiving them and trying them on, I can genuinely say the price–particularly the price of the metal framed glasses–is a total steal. I may even go as far to say they’re comparable to the one pair of higher-end sunglasses I do have.

QUAYxSHAY Packaging

The two aviator style sunglasses I purchased are from the QUAYxSHAY line, which is a collaboration with Shay Mitchell. If you can get your hands on her line, do it! Her styles are really eye-catching, but they’re limited edition so it’s something you have to grab while you can. One major pro of purchasing a QUAYxSHAY style is the carrying case. If you notice in the pictures below, the About Last Night style of sunglasses are in a black and white case. This is the standard eyewear case for Quay Australia. It’s minimal, it’s simple, it’s cute.

With QUAYxSHAY, the case is more of a focal point. It’s a gorgeous weathered gold case that has a simple “where will you shine?” quote along the center. That’s not to take anything away from the standard line of eyewear. I like my About Last Night pair as well. I do prefer the metal frame of the Viviennes over this polycarbonate frame because it adds a bit more of the quality feeling, but they still feel sturdy. I wore the About Last Night pair over the weekend for the first time and received a compliment on them. I wasn’t even wearing them at the time, they were just hooked into my collar.

Where to Buy

The first thing I wanted to know after seeing these sunglasses on a few of my favorite Youtubers was, “Where can I buy these?”. Granted, I’ve followed @whitefoxboutique on Instagram for a while now, but I never paid attention to the fact that they sell Quay Eyewear as well. You know how once you notice one thing, it’s everywhere? That’s how it was for me with this brand. Once I saw Desi Perkins rock a killer pair that I could never pull off, I kept seeing this brand all over Instagram. While this list isn’t all inclusive, here’s where I found the eyewear:

• Quay Australia – Naturally, you can purchase directly from their website. Be sure to read through the end of this post in regards to shipping and what to know prior to ordering from this location.
• White Fox Boutique – Similar to Quay Australia, read the full post prior to purchasing from this site.
• Urban Outfitters – Talk about convenience! While the selection is limited, trusty Urban Outfitters has a few varieties on their site. One thing to note is because it’s within the US, shipping is free over $50, so you can purchase two and score free shipping. The catch is the price point is higher so… are you really saving?
• ASOS – While I love to window shop here, I’ve never purchased anything from the site so I can’t speak to how good (or bad) their shopping experience is.
• Nasty Gal – I’ve ordered from their site in the past and haven’t had any issues.

Price

Prices range from AUD$40 – 60, which converts to $32 – 48 USD when rounded to nearest whole dollar. If you purchase from a US-based site like Urban Outfitters or Nasty Gal, the prices are $45-60 USD. (On top of the conversion rate, White Fox Boutique had a promo code for an additional $10 off at the time…which is why it’s important to follow them on Instagram!) To get more specific to the styles I purchased, the Vivennes were AUD$59.95 ($47.36 USD) and About Last Night was AUD$45 ($35.55 USD).

My Shipping Experience

Let me tell you, I am so impressed with shipping. I ordered both Vivienne pairs from White Fox Boutique, and All About Last Night from Quay Australia. While I wanted to order from Urban Outfitters since I’m familiar with their shipping, they didn’t have the styles I wanted. Both sites are Australian, so I anticipated a higher than average shipping rate.

As for the shipping costs and travel time, I ordered both pairs late at night on Friday, May 8. Both pairs were received on Wednesday, May 13. I was really surprised by this delivery date because speaking specifically about the Quay Australia order, it indicated after processing that it can take 14 – 25 days to arrive. Quay Australia had a slightly lower shipping rate of $10, while White Fox Boutique’s was $15 to secure express shipping.

Although both orders arrived on the same day, I’m more impressed with White Fox Boutique. What I learned from the deliveries is that both sites may be based in Australia, but Quay Australia’s order actually shipped from Los Angeles, California. Because of that, I feel like they’re shipping should be adjusted to average in-state shipping costs. White Fox Boutique truly did ship from Australia, and it still only took 5 days between placing the order and receiving the order, weekend dates included.

Quay Australia Shopping Tips

My advice if you’re looking for a pair of these sunglasses is to shop around. The main things to consider are the price conversions and shipping rates. Although shipping may seem a bit high — let’s face it, I expected but didn’t like paying $10-15 for shipping — buying directly from either Australian site is cheaper by a few dollars. (Every penny counts!) I also noticed they have the best selection to choose from. So here are a few more shopping tips:

• Shop around!
• Take note of which sites have the style you’re looking for
• Pay with Paypal (if shopping outside the US)
• Not a Paypal fan? Contact your bank prior to purchasing
• Search the #quayaustralia tag on Instagram for somewhat* helpful photos

Just to elaborate a little more with the Paypal bullet point, even if you don’t have funds in your Paypal account directly, you can still pay using their site! You’re able to link the bank card of your choice so PayPal pulls from that account. The reason it’s important to pay through Paypal if you’re shopping from one of the Australian sites is because of bank security. Depending on your bank, it will (hopefully) mark your purchase from outside the US as a red flag and prevent the transaction from going through. It’s great that banks do this, because who wants to have their bank info stolen and not have any sort of precautionary measures in place?  When you use Paypal as the middleman, the dollar rates are converted to USD and recognized as a US purchase.

If you choose not to use Paypal, then an alternate option is to contact your bank. Similar to when you splurge on a high priced item, you should contact your bank beforehand and let them know you are about to make a purchase from an Australian company and approximately how much the charges will be for. Doing this proactive measure lets the bank know it’s you and they will let the transaction go through without having a delay.

So now you’re probably thinking, “Okay Chelsey, that’s a lot of work for sunglasses…Is it worth it?” To which I say definitively, YES.

How they Look On

The only thing I wish was different across the board is the lens opacity. I’m someone who likes their eyes to be completely hidden when wearing sunglasses. As you can see from the try-on pictures below, you’re still able to see through the lens to my eyes. It’s not a huge issue, but it is the one thing keeping me from giving the brand a full five stars.

Now that I’ve talked your ear off and you’ve magically made it to the end of the post, I thought it might be helpful to visually see how they look when worn. *Sure, you can scroll through the Quay hashtag on Instagram, but I found the majority of the pictures were taken at an angle…which is frustrating when you’re legitimately trying to research an item before you buy. So here they are, head-on:

Have you purchased anything from this line of eyewear? What’s your price max when it comes to buying sunglasses?