8 Tips for getting kids to wear sunglasses

While some kids take to wearing sunglasses like ducks to water, others …. not so much! Our Miss 2 has been wearing toddler sunnies for most of her life and LOVES to wear them, but Miss 5 was a late starter, and while she puts them on occasionally they come off again just as quickly. Getting kids to wear their sunglasses can be a challenge. Challenge accepted!!

Kids eyes need protecting, even more so than adults. As adults most of us wear sunnies as a comfort thing to protect our eyes from glare. But what many of us don’t realise as parents is that our kids eyes are generally getting 3 times more sun exposure than ours, and their ocular lenses don’t cope with UV radiation as well as an adults do (more info here).

Awesome parent that you are, you have bought your little one their first pair of kids sunglasses. Hoorah! You legend! But for the life of you you can’t work out how to get them to keep them on. So we asked our Instagram and Facebook community for some input and here are some great tips for getting kids to wear sunglasses:

1.Get them wearing sunglasses from a young age

“We have put wee glasses on Sam since he was tiny so he was used to having things on his face.”

There is no such thing as too young when it comes to getting kids to wear sunglasses. The younger the better seems to be most people’s experience. Not just because the younger they are the more vulnerable their eyes are, but because wearing baby sunglasses becomes just a natural part of the going outside routine.

2. Make sure they fit comfortably

Having the right size makes all the difference. If they are too loose they will fall off, too small and they might feel uncomfortable or look awkward. You can try Babiators on at your local stockist (like this customer did), or check out our sizing guide.

3. Use a strap to hold them on

“He does like to take them on and off sometimes (don't we all ! ) so the strap means he does not loose them !”.

We also have an amazing new size adjustable fabric strap sold separately! Available in Cool Black or a fun Tie-Dye print. 

4. Tell them how super cool they look wearing them

“We also praise him each time he puts them on by saying ‘hey coooool duuude !!!”

5. Show them how cool they look in the mirror

“letting him see himself in the mirror with them on quite a lot also helps him realise what is going on ! Less mystery as he can see himself !”

6. Don’t push it

“we always made sure we never pushed him to wear them and were happy with only a few minutes at a time.. it slowly got longer..”

7. Make kids sunglasses an everyday item

“Having the glasses on a coffee table to play with to take the mystery away. Putting them on each time in the pushchair so they seemed to go together.”

8. Wear your sunnies

Another tip was “asking Sam to put our glasses on us to show we liked them.. and always having ours on at the same time”

Monkey see, Monkey do after all If you wear yours it is great modelling for little eyes xo 

9. Pair their sunnies with a hat

Not only does a hat offer them additional sun protection, it also removes immediate glare from their eyes. So, when they pop their sunnies on, the difference in how the world appears is less significant and noticeable. And when you are little, any sudden changes can seem scary and daunting.

Thank you so much to Nicole Bolton from the @boltonbunch on Instagram and her funky son Sam for all their awesome tips!! Super legends!

We’d love to hear your tips on keeping sunglasses on kids!! We getting lots of questions from customers all the time, and we understand that every kid and every parent is different.. So we’d love your tips so we have lots of ideas for new parents who really want to protect their kids eyes.

Comment with your tips below! Can’t wait to read them