I was in Knightsbridge a few weeks back and I came across another cool and quirky optician called Arthur Morrice also on Beauchamp place, just about 100 metres away from 36 Opticians. With two opticians so close together they would both need to have very unique points about them. I simply had to investigate further and see how one boutique differs from the other.
When I walked into Arthur Morrice, Dyllese very kindly welcomed me in. The shop floor space felt spacious and all the glasses were displayed neatly in gorgeous dark wooden draws and shelves. Dyllese is one of the dispensing opticians at Arthur Morrice and she gave me a brief background about the shop. Arthur Morrice was established back in the 80’s and was named after the owner. When he passed away his wife sold the shop to another family that turned it into what it is today.
Dyllese: ic! Berlin, Lindberg, Mykita, BuffloHorn, Tom Ford, Gotti but that is just to name a few.
Dyllese: Each brand offers something unique.
Dyllese: BuffloHorn without a doubt and they are actually made from the horn of a buffalo so no single frame is exactly that same due to the different patterns of the horns. They are all handmade and the price starts from £800.
Dyllese: We have some frames that are made of wood which are quite different to what is out there at the moment. We also have some real vintage glasses from the 1930’s that Arthur used to collect. Quite a lot of people do ask for them but they are becoming harder to glaze since they require flat lenses which are very rare now days.
Dyllese: Someone who likes style and are willing to pay but a lot of our customers also ask us to replicate frames for them since the buffalo range are all made to order by hand.
Dyllese: The style, quality, engineering and the colour.
Knightsbridge certainly lives up to its “shopper’s paradise” name and I can see why with two shops on the same street but both offer something very different. If you want to find out more about Arthur Morrice then go to their website www.arthur-morrice.com.