The Pince-Nez style was popular from the 1880's until the 1940's. There are two types of Pince-Nez frames and many variations within each type. One type has a spring bridge that serves both as a bridge and to provide the tension that keeps the frames on the nose.

The other style has a hard unmovable bridge. The tension is provided by two small coil springs attached to the nose pads. This type of frame was used to make the sunglasses used in the movie Matrix. Modern sunglass lenses were put in these antique frames.