Whether it's a substitute to glasses or merely a fashion statement, contact lenses seem to be quite popular. If you're thinking about ditching the bothersome glasses or you're tired of your natural brown/black irises, here's what you need to consider first.

For someone who usually wears glasses, the first step should be to make an appointment with your optician/ophthalmologist for a check-up and prescription. You usually cannot purchase lenses with “power” (prescription lenses) without a prescription. If you want lenses just for colour (plano lenses) a prescription is not required by all stores, but you should definitely ask your doctor if contacts are suitable for you. Not everyone can safely wear them as the shape and health of your eyes are important factors. Once you get the green signal from your doctor you're ready to get lenses.

Be warned that without proper care and maintenance contacts can severely harm your eyes, cause infections, for example. A friend had failed to maintain them properly and this caused her cornea to tear while removing the lens and her eye had swollen like a potato. DON'T BE HER. Remember contact lenses need to be stored in clean containers, filled with storage solution which needs to be changed at certain intervals. For details read the manual that comes with the lenses/solution, and for more detailed instructions visit http://www.allaboutvision.com/contacts/

Always remember to wash your hands thoroughly before handling the contact lenses; try not to have lotion/oil on your fingers. It's recommended to put them on before your make-up and remove them before taking your make-up off. Don't sleep in contact lenses or wet them and do remember to take them off if you feel any discomfort. Carry your container whenever you wear the lenses; this way you can keep them safe if they need to be removed, unless you're wearing the one-time-use ones, which you'll discard after each wear. Oh and never share lenses with another person or wear expired ones.

If you want coloured lenses and you'll only wear them once in a few months then you should get ones that last around a year; there are some that expire within three months – you don't want those in this case. Lenses are available in most optics stores like Fashion Optics. For a large collection check out Lens Closet – an online store that sells lenses of various brands. FreshLook, Ego Vision and Neo Vision are the most popular brands and I would recommend the branded ones, as you don't want to compromise on quality when it comes to your eyes. For first timers, a subtle look works best; try colours like honey, hazel or grey before moving on to blue, green or even violet. The shades vary as well; some consist of only one shade of the particular colour, others, two or three shades. The two latter mentioned ones look less plain but will cost you a little more than the former. Generally prices start from 500 taka and can go up to a few thousand depending on the brand.

Maintain them accordingly and you'll have a safe and fun new look. Fair warning though: for most people, once you go contact lenses you find it hard to go back.

Check out:
Fashion Optics: https://www.facebook.com/fashion.optics

Lens Closet: https://www.facebook.com/LensClosetbd?fref=ts

Salma Mohammad Ali fears she is becoming a crazy cat lady and uses writing as a means to grasp on to sanity. Send her your views/hate/love at https://www.facebook.com/salma.ali209