With no end in sight to the coronavirus pandemic, it looks like protective face wear is here to stay.
Globally, the coronavirus pandemic is still wreaking havoc, six months on since the first cases outside of China emerged.
When it will be over is anybody’s guess. Protective face wear is one way to protect yourself: many people say they’ll carry on wearing masks once the threat has subsided.
With so many people wearing them these days, it was only a matter of time before the world of fashion got involved.
Throughout the pandemic, designers have been releasing their take on face masks — luxury versions include Off-White’s popular US$95 Arrow logo face mask and Burberry’s vintage check cotton design, retailing for £90 (US$115).
And now, Louis Vuitton is taking it a step further, releasing a luxury face shield that’s designed to be “both stylish and protective,” the French fashion house said in a statement.
The “eye-catching” LV Shield transitions from clear to dark in sunlight, protecting wearers from the sun. It also features golden studs engraved with Louis Vuitton’s brand name and an elastic, monogrammed headband. The visor can also be worn upward as a classic peaked cap, according to the label.
The shield can be adjusted to be worn as a visor, and it comes with a transition lens technology that turns the plastic clear or dark, depending on the sunlight. (It’ll come in handy for beach days when this pandemic is over.) The whole thing is held together by golden studs engraved with the Louis Vuitton logo.
And it only costs US$961 (approx. THB 29,990).
The face shield will be sold online and at select Louis Vuitton stores starting on October 30.
In April, Louis Vuitton joined the global effort to make personal protective equipment to support health care workers on the front lines of the pandemic. The company said it had repurposed several of its workshops across France to “produce hundreds of thousands of non-surgical face masks” for health care workers.
The brand also said it was donating thousands of hospital gowns to six Paris hospitals in urgent need of protective gear.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention does not currently recommend the use of face shields as a substitute for masks, as it is not clear what level of
The question is: who will buy it? Perhaps the people who have trouble keeping their face masks over their noses, or those who have the means to spend frivolously while the global economy continues to spiral. Or even those who can somehow go on vacation right now, and for whom Louis Vuitton’s Cruise 2021 collection — which the face shield is a part of — is no doubt made for.
If you fit any of those criteria, good news: the Louis Vuitton face shield will be available on 30 October at the brand’s boutiques around the world.
