One of the hottest films of late, Sherlock Holmes 2, displays an amazing number of sunglasses on the primary character played by Robert Downey Jr. This despite the fact that the film takes place in 1890. Still, the shades he is wearing have the distinctly cool look of a bygone era despite being excessively modern.

For a similar look, try Oliver Peoples’ bold circular lenses, which Larry David has made more popular in his TV series Curb Your Enthusiasm. Not to mention the popularity added by the success of the Harry Potter empire. Still, these slightly more modern rounded shades are hard to pull off when not on a set. Consider a more approachable option with something less film prop and more functional. This is especially true of the tiny, square framed lenses Holmes wears in the film. A similar look by Police sunglasses are a more adaptable and preferable.

Some of the other looks to emulate in a more modern way include the looks made popular in Bridesmaids, where sunglasses are used more as a hangover tool than as a means of blocking the sun. Still, the oversized shades popular in Prada or Dior remain a top seller for beautiful women, especially those with a propensity for the drink.

Robot boxing flick Real Steel with Hugh Jackman shows us once again why Jackman was one of the hottest men alive. His fashion is always simple and stark, and yet approachable. Flannel shirts, white T-shirts, jeans and simple men’s sunglasses by Serengeti or Police make him one of the most simple fashion looks to mimic.

High fashion doesn’t have to mean low-brow environmental habits, in fact, many of the world’s most fashionable brands are going green. Help save the world, one beautiful piece of clothing or designer accessory at a time. Here’s how Prada is saving the world with accessories.

High-end items are made more durable and resilient than their cheaper counterparts, and as such they source more natural and lasting materials for their products. A Gucci purse, for example, will last years with normal wear and tear before it ends up in a landfill, polluting the earth. Thus, the one production cost (in terms of carbon credits and pollution) is minimal compared to the life of the item. This is in stark contrast to cheaper items, fakes and low-quality gear. While you may save money by buying cheap stuff, it ends up hurting the environment when it ends up floating in the ocean or rotting under the earth. Think green and buy one high-end item that you know will last.

Since designer companies use high-end materials you can be sure the cottons are authentic and not produced synthetically. Fake fabrics have a heavy chemical cost to the environment, and bleaching, dying, starching and creating cheap fabric is one sure way to pollute the earth with waste materials, but also with an excess of chemicals. The more natural a product, the better. And high-end gear is traditionally made of high-end materials that don’t have the same negative effect as cheap, knock-off fabrics and materials. Think green, and go designer.

With the success of the Game of Thrones, True Blood, Skyrim, Twilight, Harry Potter and many more fantasy sitcoms, books and games fantasy fashion is on the rise. Braided hair is as popular now as it was in the Middle Ages. Large, leather belts are back in style, boots are somehow chic to wear year round, and jewelry is getting so large it’s bordering on comical. Still, blending these fantasy fashions with high-end gear may actually result in decent fashion. Pair Serengeti sunglasses with your leather vest and perhaps you’ll look chic instead of a tad on the creepy side. Or, slip on Prada shades with your giant leather belt and boots and you may look like Angelina Jolie rather than an odd Renaissance geek.

Still, the turn to more traditional looks are not unnatural considering how confused so many people are going broke, losing faith in the future and wondering what has happened to the world around them. The return to traditionalism is natural in hard times, especially in a once-thriving economy like the western world once enjoyed. Expect to see more white lace, innocent designs and less slutty stuff. Leather and large belts, boots and other Renaissance gear will stay in fashion. Sweaters, knits and especially all-natural fabrics are likely to be the rage in 2012, as fantasy fashion takes the place of real, modern looks and a turn towards traditionalism sweeps the once infallible western world. For sunglasses fashion, consider more traditional looks by Ray Ban, or subtle looks like Serengeti or traditional Tom Fords. These looks are timeless and have the effect of avoiding pretention.

Every once in a while you’ll run across a celebrity (Lady Gaga comes to mind) who will wear anything flamboyant to get attention. That isn’t fashion, it’s a middle child’s attempt at garnishing adult attention, and it’s amateur. A-listers hardly ever have to go to extremes to get media attention, only the celebs who know they don’t really “have it” have to jazz up their media coverage with silly fashion statements. For example, Will.i.am is a decently famous musician, but what’s with the silly attention-grabbing Mykita sunglasses (image right)? These look like something a director for a B-level movie would commission for a film about badasses on Mars.

And check out Whitney Port in these ridiculous Karen Walker-Bunny shades. They look like something that would have come out of a candy box in the 1930s. I like retro flashback fashion as much as the next aficionado, but this is over the top, and a cheesy attempt at something nostalgic ill-achieved by using cheap plastic. Also, if you don’t know who Whitney Port is your in the majority, and this goes to prove that only B-listers (or C or D listers) will try to grab attention with silly wardrobe flare while out in public.

One major celebrity who defies the odds is the queen Lady Gaga, now I’m no fan of her brass, baseless music but I do recognize a certain Madonna-like manipulation of the media that is amusing. She comes out in public dressed in clothes made of meat, rags, cross-dressing, and all the while the joke is on the public for consuming her banal offerings like wolves in a chicken coop. While Will.i.am and Whitney Port wear flamboyant shades for attention, Lady Gaga has the whole persona going, and that at least garnishes some respect. Not in the fashion sense, but in the sense that she really has committed to this alter-ego and is running with it, crazy sunglasses and all.

Every year it’s the same. You wait. You stall. You drag things out and then Christmas rolls around and you don’t have gifts for the folks you love. Why did you delay? Why do we all. This year, think ahead and plan for Christmas in advance by shopping online and ordering designer glasses and sunglasses for your loved ones—the perfect functional, fashionable and memorable gift for men, women and kids alike. And the gift that keeps on giving.

What woman, of any age, doesn’t love fashion Even the girls who pretend not to care are interested in showing that they don’t care by wearing vintage or retro sunglasses to distinguish themselves from their high-end Prada-wearing counterparts. Fashion is, in that way, even for the unfashionable among us.

But function and fashion can be the same thing, especially when it comes to the most important accessory a woman can ever wear—glasses. For many women it’s a source of low self-esteem and it makes them feel ugly, awkward and unfashionable. You could be the person to turn that all around for your loved one by showing them that their vision problems are not a curse, but another excuse for great fashion and to make them look even more beautiful.

Finding the perfect pair for a gift isn’t easy, but one method of doing that is through buying an online gift card so your loved one can shop until they find the pair they adore, on your money. Or, you could buy the frames and then leave cash for the lenses. Either way, it’s practical, beautiful and functional.

Winter is a sad season, sometimes. It’s hard to get motivated to get sexy or dressed up when you know you’ll be swaddled in blankets and coats and scarves and hats to the point that any work you put into your wardrobe will be wasted once the first wind picks up and freezes you to the bone. Still, keep a few of these winter fashion tips in mind and maybe your sex appeal will shine through the cold. Sunglasses, especially designer brands like Prada, Dior or even Versace, add a certain high-class sexiness to any look.

And it’s an easy way to add charm and color to your winter wardrobe. Even when a scarf covers your necklace and your jacket hides your sexy clothing your sunglasses will be able to carry your fashion weight for you. Don’t skimp on cheap sunnies, that’s the only thing in winter people will be able to see.

Some of the best sunglasses for winter are the bigger designs like your Prada and Versace oversized shades that are so popular in Hollywood. You’ll also find the bigger sunglasses useful in winter for blocking a lot of the peripheral light and glare that comes from car windshields and the constant sunlight from a lack of leaves and other shade and relief from the sun. You’ll also be terrified to learn that most damage to your eyes is caused in winter, because this is when most people forget their sunglasses because they don’t associate the season with sun damage. Sunburn in winter (around the face and hands) is as common as freezer and wind burn.

Winter fashion is fun. In fact, it’s the most fun season of the year for fashion. Gloves, fun boots, fluffy scarves and giant furry hats. Don’t forget the oversized Oliver Peoples sunglasses that go with everything in the winter wardrobe, or the furry wrist mitts that keep your blood warm and flowing past it’s most delicate point. All of these things make the winter wardrobe colorful, full of texture and quite fun. So don’t let the lack of sun hurt your fun or your fashion, keep it lively and colorful with accessories that keep you bright and cheery.

Working from the bottom up, keep in mind that boots look great, but only on thinner legs. Make your legs look thinner by wearing large boots and tights, even if your body shape isn’t as twig-like as you’d like. The boots/tights combo is a classic for winter and one that is easy for most shapes. On chubbier women, fluffy jackets are a great addition to tight leggings and big boots, it creates the illusion that the body is slimmer than it is, even though you’ve added girth to the overall form. This kind of fashion is functional and emotional without compromising real fashion. Black leggings are the best, but white also works if your wardrobe is more pastel.

Check out the image here, all she needs is black oversized sunglasses and she’d have the perfect outfit. Of especially high fashion are the tight black boots, but they only look good on thin legs, so if your legs are more like light poles than twigs don’t attempt this look. See how her hips already look wide? And she’s a model.

When considering what to wear for a night out on the town, let’s not do the noobs mistakes and wear what we think looks nice. No, drinking outfits require special attention to detail early on, because that’s the kind of reasoning that leaves you once the booze has entered. For example, you’ll need sunglasses, preferably dark tinted ones like Prada’s winter line, to block out every last piece of sunlight in the wee hours of the morning.

You’ll also need a piece of paper with your name and address on it, just incase things go south. Sturdy shoes for whatever adventures you embark on after the first pub (or two) and a bit of tucked away warmth should the weather turn while enjoying your spirits. All of this, and more, is necessary to make sure you have a fun night without any unexpected madness of the unwelcomed variety.

You’ll also want a few surprises in appearance. Women love men who have peacocked themselves, after all human are not that different from animals and male species with impressive plumes usually attract the best mates. So, deck yourself out in something attention-grabbing and get out there. We’re talking pink sunglasses, a pointy hat or even a flashy shirt. Women also deck themselves out, but to be honest men don’t really notice or care. If the skirt is short that’s where a man’s attention to fashion starts to wane. No need to go designer to impress a boy– he’ll not know anyway. Better to play to a fantasy with a biker look, a princess look or god forbid, the schoolgirl look.

You’d be surprised how many people have literally no idea what their best color would be. I often see men and women alike walking around in the exact color that makes them look washed-out, pale, sickly or just gross. Yellow tends to do this to brunette Caucasians. Red tends to work better for this group. Yellows look great on blondes though. And this is especially true of glasses. I see a beautiful woman in Dior purple sunglasses and I think “who dropped her on her pretty head?” With a bit more attention to detail she’d be a knockout. And yet the wrong color makes her look washed out and awkward.

Here are a few tips on getting your colors right. First, pastels are ideal for blondes, men and women alike. And jewel tones are better for darker skin. Primary colors (blue, red, green) are ideal for brunettes and silver and gold look decent on just about everyone. Yellow is considered a pastel in most fashion circles, unless it’s a jewel-toned yellowish-gold that is used more as an accessory than a primary hue. Orange is a dangerous color in most cases, and is one of the most abused colors. Most just stay away from it, as it’s hard to wield properly. Blacks work well on most, as does white, but keep in mind that white on pale skin can have one of two effects. It can make you look tan (if you have a bit of color) or wash you out entirely (if you are stark white). It’s a high-end color (like purple) so use it sparingly. Don’t ever wear a white top and bottom together, this is an beginner’s move.

Winter is one of the best seasons for sunglasses. Although summer gets all the warm-weather accessories and of course the opportunity to show off your body, winter is actually better for fashion. Scarves, thicker sunglasses, boots, fancy socks, sexy gloves, in winter everything is a bit more fashionable, and sometimes more colorful too. You can get away with wearing Prada sunglasses in winter, but wearing the same frames in summer makes you look contrived and too “big city.”

And in fact Prada is one of the best brands for winter because of its bulk and girth. Other great winter brands are Tom Fords, which are likewise big but they have more of an autumn feel, and Police (for men) where you’ll be able to get a bit of bulk without compromising your natural, rugged looks. For men, there are very few winter brands that work without making you look like you are trying too hard, which in fact you would be in most cases (like people who wear their sunglasses indoors).

One of the best ways to look fashionable in winter is to pair scarves with sunglasses and possibly even a hat. The more chances to splash some color and charm into your wardrobe, the better. And you can get away with more. Sexy scarves with cool images on them, or knee-high boots that you’d be too shy to wear in summer, can all come out in winter in full force. And winter is the best season for fashion because your makeup can be thicker, more colorful and more personalized whereas in spring and summer you have to look light and natural.