Ferilli Eyewear is an eyewear brand born in 2018 from the idea of Lecce optician and orthoptist Cristiano Ferilli. The brand’s mission is to create accessories using innovative and eco-sustainable materials, with a focus on prickly pear fibre. The glasses are made from Apulian prickly pear fibre, Sikalindi® (in Grika language), also a material that won the Oscar Green 2013 award. The dehydrated fibre, supported by birch woodbacking panels and then coated in resin, is used to make the frames of the glasses, enriched with olive and ebony wood temples. The result is a unique and authentic material, with veins that give an ever-changing and unrepeatable pattern. The fibre can also have different colours depending on the different conditions of the plant and its exposure to rain, wind and sun. The raw material, Sikalindi®, is produced in Puglia, precisely in Salento, while the design is made with the support of an eyewear company inLazio.

 

“Sikalindi” , the first collection

 

The first Ferilli Eyewear collection, on sale since January 2018, consists of four models, made inlimited edition(120 pieces each) and sold online at www.ferillieyewear.com and in selected opticians. The design is unisex, while the shapes and colours are inspired by the small villages of Puglia, particularly those of Salento, where there is a large presence of the Cetacea plant.Moreover, each model tells a story through the colouring of the lens, in two versions: full or shaded. San Gregorio, Otranto, Porto Miggiano and Leuca are the four models that make up the “Sikalidi” collection.

 

The second Collection

 

The second Ferilli Eyewear collection, on sale from May 2020, consists of six models, which continue to tell the story of the Apulian towns. The front becomes thinner and lighter while the temples will be made of ebony and fibre. The new models bear the names of: Castro, Maglie, Ostuni, Porto Badisco, Gallipoli along with a second version of Leuca.

 

Sustainable glasses – the Prickly Pear of Apulia

IThe prickly pear is a fast-growing, ‘pest’ plant that can quickly vegetate and reproduce spontaneously. Periodically, it is necessary to thin out the plants in order to contain their exuberant growth. Sikalindi fibre is obtained by extracting the fibre from the plant while it is still green, respecting its life cycle. To guarantee sustainability, backing panels from controlled reforestation are used. The fibre needed to produce the glasses comes from this process, extracted using a patented and completely eco-sustainable dehydration method without the use of polluting agents. The entire production process takes place in Italy, specifically in Salento. Sikalindi® was the material that won the Oscar Green 2013 award.

 

Awards

In its first year of life, the Ferilli Eyewear brand has achieved a few milestones. Among the awards: “best eco-sustainable eyewear 2019″ award– Monaco International Optic Trophies- Principality of Monaco. “Maker of Merit” – Maker Faire Roma – 2019. The Eyewear brand was also selected to participate in “Showcase” – AltaRoma for the January 2020 edition, where it had the opportunity to showcase the collection to national and international buyers and press.

 

Designer

Cristiano Ferilli was born in 1993 in the province of Lecce. From a very young age, he was fascinated by the world of eyewear, so much so that he decided to become an optician. After graduating, he moved to Rome and graduated in Orthoptics and Ophthalmology at the Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore.His career path led him to interact with both hospitals and top players in the sector, working as an optician and optometrist. After developing discrete technical skills, in 2016 Cristiano decided to combine them with design, designing his own line of glasses. The idea came about following a visit to the International Optics Exhibition (MIDO) in Milan and the intuition to use a material never before seen in the world of eyewear, inextricably linked to its territory of origin: the prickly pear. In the meantime, Cristiano has continued his studies and obtained his Master’s Degree in Rehabilitation Sciences of the Health Professionsin 2019, continuing his research, inspiration and training, the basis of the multi-disciplinary contribution he dedicates to his brand