Alexander Daas Shield the sun, awesomely

At some point, everyone needs to branch out and do their own thing. Well, fine...everyone except Matt LeBlanc. For sweet sun-blocking eyewear from a Bay Area dude finally spreading his wings, peep Alexander Daas at SF Optics.

The debut frames from a second-generation shades seller in the Marina, AD's are spiritually-inspired, high-end hybrid shades made with top-quality Japanese plastics that combine soft rectangular wraps with a modified aviator profile, one where Howard Hughes hopefully fills his milk bottles with milk, and urine bottles with urine. The sunglasses feature Euro stop hinges (to ensure closed legs don't scratch the back of the lenses), are available in gradient tint or polarized lenses, and come in three colorways: blue/grey, tortoise, and moss, though that one isn't popular with people from New England. Or Minnesota. Or, soon enough, Tennessee. Better still, the shades incorporate a diamond hole at the end of each leg that's actually compatible with an about-to-launch custom chain "croakie", also what the New York Daily News headline probably read when Steve Irwin passed.

The initial launch is actually part of a Spring 2011 collection that'll fully drop in January and include four more men's frames, each with its own colorway -- though the price point might be a problem for Joey, seeing as how his job's a joke, he's broke, and his love life's D.O.A.