Garrett Leight Brings California-Cool Eyewear to New York City

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Should New York ever get true winter weather in the coming months, take shelter in Soho's newest eyewear boutique, Garrett Leight. The brand opened its first East Coast store earlier this month on Soho's Grand Street and brought along its Venice Beach roots in its decor, from the greenery and cacti framed against the entryway by an undulating white bench to the light wooden fixtures holding dozens and dozens of optical frames for shoppers to browse.

On those display cases, what'll probably stand out most to a New Yorker dressed in her all-black uniform are the colors. You'd be hard-pressed to find a simple black frame with black sunglass lenses, but you'll probably be too enamored by the shades of pinks, greens, and blues in unique looking frames (most of which are in the $300 to $400 range), including the limited-edition New York frame that's available as either regular glasses or sunglasses, to notice that.

Customers can also play around on a customization wall in the back, selecting to "Manhattan Matte" their frames and then choose a lens. It's one of several cool touches in the 900-square foot space, like the record player behind the cash wrap (where copies of Leight's store magazine Spectacle are available to peruse) and the gallery wall across from the greenery.

That artwork displayed is indicative of what's to come in the yet-to-be finished basement level — Leight plans to transform it into an artist's space, allowing locals to showcase their works and hold events.

It's been a year of expansion for Leight (whose dad founded Oliver Peoples, by the way, so the eyewear business clearly runs in the family): Before expanding to the East Coast, he went just a few hours north of home to open up a San Francisco shop.