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Along with our fancy shoes, sunglasses have been filed away with other items rendered useless during our time in lockdown, collecting dust alongside those dumbells we swore we'd use.

And oh how we've missed eyewear. With us Southern Hemisphere inhabitants being both blessed and cursed with some of the harshest sun exposure in the world, they've always been a quintessential part of Aussie fashion — pre-pandemic, anyway — and one of the few sartorial areas where we bold & brazen are the norm.

Luckily, as we slowly reemerge into society, right in time for picnic season, our desperate need for some fresh shades is justified.

But where previous summers have observed the '90s micro sunglasses trend become the season's staple, this year, we're going further back — to the '70s. Taking a cue from icons like Jackie Onassis and Bridget Bardot, the eyewear styles we're seeing everywhere are bold and thick-framed with coloured lenses and Aviator shapes that demand a Farrah Fawcett blowout to match.

Having a transformative power unlike any other accessory, sunnies are an easy way to inject some playfulness into an outfit. And, of course, they provide ample sun protection to shield your peepers from those damaging UV rays. But there is 'fun' in 'functional'. Click through for our essential picks for retro sunglasses to shop this season.