What Tipton Eyeworks is known for
Founded as Tipton Eyeworks in Seattle in 1998 by Zachary Tipton Milaskey and refounded in Budapest in 2004 with his brother Zoltan, the workshop makes eyewear frames from repurposed vinyl records, including communist-era records salvaged from Budapest flea markets for its first collection.
Tipton Eyeworks started in Seattle in 1998, founded by Zachary Tipton Milaskey. The company was refounded in Budapest in 2004, when Zachary teamed up with his brother Zoltan after developing a manufacturing process durable enough to turn vinyl records into wearable eyewear frames. The material choice traces to a personal discovery: searching for an alternative frame material, Zachary came across his father's old vinyl record collection and began experimenting with cutting and shaping the discs into frames. The workshop's first series used vinyl records from the Communist era, salvaged from flea markets around Budapest, giving each pair of frames a one-off pattern determined by the printed grooves and labels of the source record. The Budapest studio operates under the Tipton Eyeworks name alongside product lines marketed as Vinylize and Cinematique, and continues to hand-make frames from upcycled vinyl and other reclaimed materials at its Budapest workshop, combining an optical shop with in-house production.
How ORBIS reads this city
Best for — Spectacle frames handcrafted from repurposed vinyl records
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