“People have come to the conclusion that it doesn’t matter where they look to buy glasses.” The Sunkins set out to prove otherwise when they opened the business in 2019.

Small independent lines from around the world dominate the collection. Each line is displayed with expert care and diligent thought.

Owner Dr. Jake Sunkin, left, stands with a customer.

“Everything here is very deliberate,” says Chris Sunkin. “No line is a duplicate. Everything has a different vibe, a different appeal.”

Their marketing tagline says it best: “Ugly Glasses Not Sold Here.”

Everywhere your eye falls there is something to discover: Interior arches and columns; an exposed brick wall; an array of hand-made display tables made of 100-year-old southern yellow pine.

Once the Sunkins realized new bricks wouldn’t do for an exposed interior wall, they found a supplier who’d salvaged bricks from demolished 19th-century Baltimore row houses.

Everything doubles as a gateway to a compelling story, from the unique frame lines to the eclectic mix of seemingly random items interspersed throughout.

An array of vintage typewriters has sparked some interesting conversations; one woman even burst into tears. Sunkin recalls, “She said, ‘My dad had one of these and I typed my homework on it.’”

The Sunkins have found that small details really resonate with people, like their (admittedly tongue-in-cheek) sandwich board. “We get calls asking, ‘Are you the ugly glasses people?’” says Chris Sunkin.