Anne et Valentin Frames for Small Faces: Feist, Fanzine, Frehel, Alma 2, Albertine, Angie (42-47 mm)
In short: Six Anne et Valentin frames at Gazal Eyecare sit in the 42–47 mm bracket — Feist, Frehel, Fanzine, Angie, Albertine and Alma 2. The three smallest are all Formacolor steel-and-acetate frames at 42 mm; the smallest all-acetate Alpha frame is 45 mm. Caliber alone will not tell you which fits: bridge width decides as much as lens size.
Buying eyewear for a small face is mostly an exercise in disappointment. A lot of what is sold as "petite" is a 50 mm frame with a marketing label, and the frames that are genuinely small are usually either children's styling or wire ovals.
Anne et Valentin are an exception, and unusually explicit about it. Of the eleven frames on their own dealer best-seller ranking, nine have a caliber of 48 mm or under and three are 42 mm. Their description of the Feist says it was "created for the littlest faces." Their description of the Alma says it is "suitable for small faces and fine lines." These are not afterthoughts in the range; they are the range.
The six frames in the bracket
Across everything we carry from the house, published calibers run 42 mm to 51 mm. Six frames sit between 42 mm and 47 mm:
| Model | Size | Front width (approx.) | Shape | Line | Price | In stock? |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Feist | 42-22-145 | ~106 mm | Cat-eye | Formacolor | $615 | Yes — 2 colorways |
| Frehel | 42-23-145 | ~107 mm | Geometric pantos | Formacolor | $545 | Special order |
| Fanzine | 42-24-145 | ~108 mm | Round | Formacolor | $545 | Yes — 1 colorway |
| Angie | 45-19-141 | ~109 mm | Butterfly | Alpha | $385 | Yes — 1 colorway |
| Albertine | 45-20-142 | ~110 mm | Pantos, keyhole bridge | Alpha | $385 | Yes — 2 colorways |
| Alma 2 | 47-21-141 | ~115 mm | Cat-eye | Alpha | $385 | Special order |
Front width there is caliber plus bridge plus caliber — the standard optician's approximation, measured before the end pieces, which add a few more millimetres. It is the number that actually predicts whether a frame will sit inside your face or hang off it.
Caliber is not the whole answer
This is the mistake almost everyone makes when shopping by numbers.
Look at the Feist and the Angie in that table. The Feist has a 42 mm caliber; the Angie has 45 mm. On caliber alone the Feist is three millimetres smaller. But the Feist's bridge is 22 mm and the Angie's is 19 mm, so across the whole front they finish within about three millimetres of each other — and the 45 mm Angie is the frame with the narrower bridge.
Which means the two frames fit different small faces. The Angie suits a face that is narrow across the nose. The Feist suits a face that is small overall but has normal or generous nose-bridge spacing. Neither is "smaller" in a way that is useful without knowing which part of your face is the constraint.
The three 42 mm Formacolor frames make the same point among themselves: Feist at ~106 mm, Frehel at ~107 mm, Fanzine at ~108 mm. Identical lens size, three genuinely different fits — see Feist vs. Fanzine vs. Foryou for the shape comparison.
Why the smallest frames here are all steel-and-acetate
Notice that the three 42 mm frames are all from the Formacolor line, and the smallest all-acetate Alpha frame stops at 45 mm. That is not a coincidence; it is a material constraint.
Acetate needs bulk to stay rigid. Cut an acetate rim small enough for a 42 mm lens and you either get a chunky frame or a fragile one. Stainless steel holds its shape in a far finer section, so a steel rim can go smaller and stay delicate. If you want the smallest possible Anne et Valentin, you are shopping Formacolor — and paying the $545–$615 that the two-material construction costs.
If you want small and $385, the Alpha frames at 45–47 mm are the answer, and the three of them are compared in Alma 2 vs. Albertine vs. Angie.
The two Anne et Valentin say it out loud about
Feist — "a cat-eye full of audacity and optimism created for the littlest faces." 42-22-145, the narrowest front we carry from the house, two colorways on the shelf. $615.
Alma 2 — "small, classic, feminine, fresh… suitable for small faces and fine lines." 47-21-141, the largest frame in this guide and the one with the most generous bridge. $385, special order.
A word about lenses
Small frames and progressive lenses are compatible far more often than people expect, but it is a measurement question rather than a yes-or-no one.
A progressive needs vertical room below your pupil for the corridor and the reading zone. What determines that is the frame's lens height and your own fitting height — not the caliber printed on the temple. Anne et Valentin do not publish a vertical lens measurement for their frames, so we measure the actual frame in the shop and take your heights before anything is ordered. Where a frame is tight for a standard design, short-corridor progressives exist precisely for this situation.
Single vision and readers are not a concern at any of these sizes.
How to actually choose
Three of the six — Feist, Fanzine and Angie — plus both in-stock Albertines are physically in Roswell right now. Most are single pieces. If you are anywhere near north Atlanta, the honest recommendation is to come and put a 42 mm and a 45 mm frame on back to back; that comparison answers more in a minute than any table can.
Everything is in the Anne et Valentin collection, and the wider context is in our Anne et Valentin best-sellers guide.
More on Anne et Valentin
- The Anne et Valentin Design Story: Why French Frames From Toulouse Look Like Nothing Else
- Anne et Valentin Collections & Frames: How to Choose Your Pair
- Anne et Valentin: Acetate vs. Metal Frames — How to Choose Between the Two
Frequently Asked Questions
Which Anne et Valentin frames fit small faces?
At Gazal Eyecare, six frames sit in the 42–47 mm bracket: Feist (42-22-145), Fanzine (42-24-145), Frehel (42-23-145), Angie (45-19-141), Albertine (45-20-142) and Alma 2 (47-21-141). Anne et Valentin themselves describe the Feist as "created for the littlest faces" and the Alma as "suitable for small faces and fine lines," so two of the six are explicitly designed for this.
What eye size counts as small in Anne et Valentin frames?
There is no official definition, so the useful answer is relative. Across the Anne et Valentin frames we carry, published calibers run from 42 mm to 51 mm. Anything at 42–45 mm is at the small end of that range, and 42 mm is the floor — no frame we stock from the house is smaller. Bear in mind that caliber alone does not decide fit: the bridge width matters just as much, and a 42 mm frame with a 24 mm bridge is wider overall than a 45 mm frame with a 19 mm one.
Is Feist or Fanzine smaller?
Feist. Both have a 42 mm caliber and 145 mm temples, so the lenses are the same size, but the Feist’s bridge is 22 mm against the Fanzine’s 24 mm. Adding caliber plus bridge plus caliber gives roughly 106 mm across the Feist’s front and 108 mm across the Fanzine’s, before the end pieces. Two millimetres sounds trivial and is genuinely noticeable at this size.
Does Anne et Valentin make petite cat-eye frames?
Yes, and it is one of the things the house is unusually good at. The Feist is a 42-22-145 cat-eye which Anne et Valentin say was "created for the littlest faces," and the Alma 2 is a 47-21-141 cat-eye they call "small, classic, feminine, fresh." Both are genuinely small rather than standard frames marketed as petite.
Can a small Anne et Valentin frame take a progressive lens?
Usually yes, but it has to be checked frame by frame rather than assumed. A progressive lens needs enough vertical depth below your pupil for the corridor and the reading zone, and that depends on the frame’s lens height and on your own fitting height — not on the caliber that is printed on the temple. Anne et Valentin do not publish a vertical lens measurement, so we measure the actual frame in the shop and take your fitting heights before ordering. Short-corridor progressive designs exist specifically for small frames, and they are often the right answer here.