Costa Mainsail Sunglasses – Best Water Activity Sunglasses

Devan Michael

Born on the water

With summer on the horizon, that means it’s time to retire the snowboard and trade it in for kayaks, paddleboards, surfing, and anything else you can do on the water! That means you may be dusting off your sunglasses and realizing you are in the market for another pair specifically made for all our favorite water activities. Look no further – the Costa Mainsail Polarized Blue Lens sunglasses are here for you!

This month I have been lucky enough to test out the Costa Mainsail Polarized sunglasses, which have been clutch given the weather is warming up in Denver, the ice is melting, and the reservoirs are opening back up! These unisex sunglasses, with Matte Black frames and Blue Mirror Polarized Polycarbonate lenses, have a Regular fit, which means the medium lens front design is optimal for those who prefer to cover an average portion of their face. 

 

Costa is known for being some of the best water-activity sunglasses, and they live up to those standards with these glasses. Their Mainsail frames are your go-to pair for every outing and adventure, as they are built with the same high-quality materials and features you want everywhere, from the beach to the river to the lake. The big blue, Mainsail frames help keep excess light out with micro side shields and hoodings. The Hydrolite™ grips on the temples help keep the frames in place while you are paddling against the current or casting your line into the water while also keeping the salty sweat and water out of your eyes. 

 

Although they could be your go-to glasses for every type of adventure, the Costa Mainsail Sunglasses are best for Boating & Fishing in deep water, activities in open, reflective water, and anywhere there is the harsh sun. Whether you fish, participate in water sports, or simply enjoy being a beach bum, these should be considered in your top sunglasses! 

 

Before we dive deeper (pun intended) into my favorite aspects of these glasses, I wanted to take a minute to talk about Costa Sunglasses, as their mission and guiding principles really resonated with me. 

 

Costa was founded in 1983, “Born On The Water” as they like to call it. Costa is a premium sunglasses company with the mission to create the best sunglasses on the planet for life’s great adventures. And their patented technology like those only in Costa lenses and frames, is proof that they are succeeding! 

 

When researching what this company is all about, what stood out the most to me about Costa were the three pillars that  guide the company in all that they do:

• Perform – Costa wants to be the best-performing sunglasses that meet all of your technical requirements without sacrificing style
• Explore – Costa wants to equip you for all of your AOTDs, specifically on and around the water. They are devoting their lives to chasing the most remote places that bring us to life. That is why they’ve developed the best sunglasses to help us reach these sought-after locales. Because Costas are more than sunglasses, they are the badge of the explorer!
• Protect – Costa believes that unless we are committed to preserving our oceans and waterways while conserving the life within them. This includes spearheading Sustainability Projects, Initiatives and partnering with other like-minded individuals whose #1 goal is to save the planet! Some of these initiatives include Kick Plastic, #One-Coast, Bio-Basin Resin, Ocearch Expeditions, Untangle Our Oceans, and 35 Years.

 

I highly recommend checking out the above initiatives if you are someone who cares where their products come from and want the products you wear to be an extension of your personal brand! 

 

Now let’s get back to the review. Here were some things that stuck out most to me about the Costa Mainsail Polarized Sunglasses:

 

1. 1. Blue Mirror Lenses – Costa 580® lenses were designed by in-house light spectrum experts to enhance colors while absorbing harmful high-energy blue light, enhancing reds, greens, and blues, while filtering our harsh yellow light. This explains why I was impressed at how much the glare was mitigated when I slid these down my nose bridge. You know that annoying glare that causes you to squint, get wrinkles and get sun-induced headaches? Yep – that’s been my experience to date until I tried on these Costa Mainsails. Once they were on my face on the kayak, the glare instantly disappeared, and the water colors seemed to come even more to life! 

• Visibility & Clarity – The reason I, like most of you, seek out AOTDs, is to unwind, unplug, and be present while taking in the beauty that surrounds us. One thing I do not want to take away from that experience is sunglasses diminishing the natural colors  Mother Earth has graced us with. I was impressed by how the Costa Mainsail Polarized glasses enhanced the snow-covered mountains, turquoise water and beautiful birds and wildlife swimming around the kayak. These glasses helped enhance my connection with nature, that is a difficult feat for most products to do.

1. Lightweight & Impact-Resistant – Similar to the Costa 580® lenses, the 580® Lightwave Polycarbonate frames screamed stable & durable from the moment I pulled them out of their case (which alone is extremely durable and would hold up well in your tackle box)! Their glasses provide the best clarity in material, with encapsulated mirrors (between layers of glass) that are 20% thinner and 22% lighter than the average polarized glass. For those that know me (especially my fiance) I am not the most graceful, which means, more often than not, I am accidentally dropping things that are relatively delicate (looking at you iPhone, sunglasses, and dentable water bottles). Costa’s Polycarbonate designs are the lightest and most durable lens materials, built with a C-WALL ® molecular bond which makes them scratch-resistant. And almost on cue, as I was blowing up the inflatable Kayak with these glasses tucked into my shirt (check out for that Kayak review coming soon!) These glasses fell off and hit the gravel ground. But NO SCRATCHES! So if you want one less thing to worry about while doing your water activities, use the Costa Mainsail Sunglasses for worry-free comfort.

 

The only feedback I would give Costa is if they could make an additional design with slightly larger lenses to appeal to those who prefer more of their face covered by their glasses. But outside of that, I’d give these glasses a 10/10! 

In short, the Costa Mainsail Sunglasses have my approval and will be staples in my water AOTD wardrobe moving forward! 

 

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Devan Michael

Growing up in Massachusetts, Devan has been an athlete all her life. Starting at the age of 4 as a competitive gymnast, she learned quickly the joy that comes from hard work, determination, and a jammed packed schedule. Eventually, gymnastics led to competitive lacrosse, which resulted in her growing some wings and going to the PNW to pursue a DI College Lacrosse opportunity at the University of Oregon. 

 

On the single off-day each week, she quickly learned to see Mother Earth as her playground and wanted to use every second of free time to find chase AOTDs (Adventures of the Days). These AOTDs were the inspiration for her blog Dabbling in Traveling & youtube channel. 

 

From waterfalls, to snow covered mountains, to sand dune hikes – one thing was certain, something always went awry on these AOTDs. But hey, memories were always made! Not only was UO an incredible college experience, Oregon sparked her love for the outdoors & traveling across the country for games helped introduce her to Colorado in 2014. Staring up at the Flatirons on CU Boulder’s campus, she knew one day she would call Colorado home! 

 

After returning to the east coast upon graduation, Devan’s heart never stopped longing to live in Colorado one day. But luckily the pandemic brought a newfound acceptance for remote work and in Nov. 2021 her dream came true!

 

By day, Devan is a Product Manager at Capital One. By afternoon, she is a personal trainer, coaching group Crossfit classes at Axistence Athletics (the best Adventure gym you will ever find!). By evening, she pours her heart into nonprofit work, specifically focused on driving sustainable change in Haiti through the Brace for Impact 46 organization (Fun fact – she has been traveling to Haiti since 2015, accumulating 7 trips and 7 months of living down there!). 

 

Brace for Impact works in Northern Haiti to provide sustainable, multifaceted approaches to support child development, education, medical care, job development, and implementation of clean water & sanitation across the community, which touches 40,000 people each day! (Want to learn more? Check out their website www.braceforimpact46.com )

 

As her friends would tell you (despite trying) Devan does not slow down and is always trying to fit AOTDs into each open moment. Whether it be hiking, paddleboarding, road-biking, running, Crossfitting, weight-lifting, snowboarding or simply exploring different parts of CO with her favorite furry friend Bailey, it’s safe to say Devan has found her “Home” here in Colorado!

 

Fun fact – Devan had reconstructive hip surgery in 2016 (actually called a Periacetabular Osteotomy… but that’s a tongue twister), where doctors said she may never run or walk again. After a 22 month recovery period, she proved doctors wrong and uses that motivation to encourage everyone she interacts with to truly treat movement as a gift and to never take it for granted. With that being said, to keep her body active, she needs to make sure her gear can support her so she can remain #PAOStrong! 

 

Devan is excited to join the Engearment team!