If there is one sunglasses style we can’t get enough of—it’s the shield one. These retro-futuristic frames not only do a great job of blocking the sun; their wraparound look gives you a stylish mystique that’s sporty and edgy at once. The one caveat? They can be a little intimidating to wear.

To get a better sense of their real-life potential, our team decided to put a few of the season’s trendiest styles to the test, trying on pairs from Celine to Khaite to Thistles (a homegrown New York brand that can’t keep its bestselling Atlas in stock).

Some shades we tried came straight from the runway (see: Tory Burch’s runway wrap and Miu Miu’s Ivresse); others already had a place in editors’ handbags. Our fashion market director, Maddy Fass, was keen to try her Khaite x Oliver Peoples’s pair in another color. Ditto for Irene Kim, our production and editorial associate, whose in the possession of not one, but two, of the season’s bestsellers—lucky girl!

As for my colleagues trying them on for size for the first time? Turns out they were pleasantly surprised by the general fit; our beauty shopping editor, Kiana Murden, was quickly won over by Tom Ford’s pair. And while I wasn’t planning on making the Alaïa’s I tried on my everyday pair, I do have designs on a similar style. I’ll let you guess which one.

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