You may or may not need contacts to see well, but color contact lenses let nearly anyone have new eye color. You can add to what you already have or choose a completely different color. You weren't able to pick your eye color at birth, but color contact lenses now let you redo them whatever way you want.

Although there are many options open to you with color contact lenses, there are two basic types. One kind of lens is made to add to your natural eye color. Most of these lenses are made for light color eyes since the subtle effect they usually produce would be unnoticeable with dark eyes. The tint is contained within the lens and is evenly spread throughout. Because the tint is virtually transparent, it adds color to your eye but not to what you see.

The other basic choice for color contact lenses, is an opaque lens. This type of lens completely covers your iris, the colored part of your eye, with a non-transparent tint. So your eyes look to be the color of the lens. Naturally the center portion of the lens over your pupil is left clear. The most natural-looking opaque lenses have multiple layers of color patterns that imitate the look of an iris.

Since the only difference between color contact lenses and clear contacts is the tint, most types of contacts are available as a color lens. For instance, a popular style of contact lens can be worn for up to a week of continuous wear or used only during the day for up to two weeks before replacement. And you can get this style of lens as either an enhancement tint or an opaque tint.

Even lenses to correct for astigmatism, are available as color contact lenses. But even if no correction is required, a prescription is still needed. It's needed to make sure that the lenses fit correctly. Improperly fitting lenses can cause serious eye problems, so besides the legal requirement, getting the eye exam just makes good sense.