Sweet Treats for your Eyes!
In Uptown Gig Harbor
(Across from Greenhouse Restaurant)
Gig Harbor, WA 98335 253-432-4303
Laugh with us, sing with us, dance with us as we help you help you see and look your best!
Meet Us & Learn “Why Eye Candy”
Eye Candy Optical is a locally-owned optical that opened August 2019. We are a solo-practitioner office, so you will not see a different doctor every time you come in. Our optometrist, Dr. Kandi Moller, does vision exams, medical exams (diabetes, cataracts, glaucoma), contact lens evaluations, and more. Our frame boutique has frames ranging from funky to sparkly, modern to retro, and unique to traditional. Some lines we carry are ROGER (Dutch-designed eyewear for the person who wants unique shapes and color), Rain City (often-classic feel in shape, but with a PNW sense of color and style), Modo & Eco (they donate to children and plant a tree for every frame sold), icBerlin (German-engineered with a screwless hinges), and many more. Sunglasses are available, or any frame can be made into sunglasses.
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Frames are eye candy for your face. Indoor glasses, progressives for the computer, relax lenses for reading, sunglasses, blue-blocking glasses….we all need multiple pairs so HAVE FUN!
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Dr. Kandi Moller grew up in the midwest and is a self-professed cat freak, currently co-owning (or is that owned by?) 6 with her husband. She really loves all animals and has had 3 lab mixes, a bunny, and backyard chickens. With 20 years of optometric experience, she decided to open her own office to offer personalized care and unique frames with a fun atmosphere. She may sing or dance to the radio, hug you hello (well, before COVID), give you a verbal hard time, and laugh a lot, so be prepared to not have your typical boring office visit.
June 2019 she had a takotsubo heart attack, and her life was saved by CPR; read about it here.
Robert is her husband. He is our marketer and you may have seen him at festivals or hitting the streets, letting everyone he meets know about us. Gregarious and good-natured, he enjoys spreading joy and helping you.
Stephanie is our optician. A new mommy, she often brings Iris in to model our frames and charm our patients. (Ok, she has charmed Dr. too, which is no small feat!) Also a mom to 3 big dogs, and a man mixed in there somewhere, all sharing their first home.
Medical & Vision Plans
We accept almost any vision or medical plan. We are in-network with most medical plans for Blue Cross, Medicare, United HealthCare, Premera, Tricare, and Cigna. We are open access for vision discount plans like VSP, Davis, EyeMed. Open access means WE CAN SEE YOU, but we are not limited to using that plan’s laboratory to make your glasses, not limited to showing you only your covered frames, not limited to selling you that plan’s lenses….without limitations, we can offer our entire selection of frames and lenses and discounts. We do the work for you!!! We check your benefits, you pay for services, we submit the claim for you, you wait for your reimbursement*.
A vision exam is like a routine physical with your physician. It finds a prescription and screens for health issues; it provides no medical care or advice or referrals or prescriptions.
If you have a complaint or question you want addressed (like floaters, cataracts, diabetes, irritation, dry eyes), this will bill as MEDICAL, NOT VISION. If we find a medical reason for vision changes, this will bill as medical. It’s easy to assume blurred vision means your prescription has changed and new glasses will fix it. Too often that is not the case, and it may be caused by an eye or body (systemic) disease, like cataracts, diabetes, brain tumors, keratoconus. We are following insurance rules and are required to bill this way, even if you don't have insurance. You will have to pay a fee ($50) to find the glasses prescription since medical plans do not.
*Benefits are estimates and are not guarantees of payment. Patient assumes full responsibility to pay what the plan does not.
No vision plan? No problem!
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We offer a prompt pay discount vision exam fee of $95. Optomap retinal images are only $39 extra, so total of $134. You also get 20% off complete pairs of glasses when you get our premium no-glare coating. Your medical insurance may actually cover a large part of the visit if you have cataracts, diabetes, or other issues.
Our Exams, Equipment, & Specialty Services
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During your VISION EXAM, Dr. Moller gives you her undivided attention as she does all of the exam tests without a technician. Your eye fluid pressure will be measured with the iCare….NO AIR PUFF, so that is no longer an excuse to not get your eye exam :-); this helps us check for glaucoma. The curvature of your eyes may be measured with a corneal topographer. A picture will be taken of the inside of your eyeball, the retina, with the Optomap. Dr. Moller will also use an upright microscope to look closely at your eyelids for irritation, eyelashes for mites (you read that correctly), cornea (clear bubble on your eyes), and lens for cataracts. Finally. Dr. Moller will help you find your prescription and come up with the best solution for your needs, whether that is glasses, contact lenses, surgery, orthokeratology, or myopia management
MEDICAL EYE EXAMS are needed if a patient has a specific medical complaint or condition, like diabetes, cataracts, or floaters. They may incorporate many of the tests described above, but for a different purpose and Dr. Moller analyzes the results differently. She may need to order more tests, send you out for surgery, send reports to your physician, or prescribe medications. Ocular coherence tomography may be done. This lets Dr. Moller look at the layers of the retina, not just at the surface. Dry eye testing may be done with dyes or the keratograph to check the myriad of causes to help us come up with a treatment plan.
OUR SPECIALIZED EQUIPMENT and explanation of some terms
Optomap Retinal Imaging: high quality picture of up to 200 of the retinal surface
iCare: uses rebound technology to measure the fluid pressure without drops or air puff
Ocular Coherence Tomography: details the layers of the retina so we can look underneath the surface for swelling from diabetes or a separation of the layers from a retinal detachment or leakage of the cells from macular degeneration. Very high tech but as easy as a picture.
Corneal Topography: maps the hills and valleys of the cornea to create a topographical map
Keratograph: looks for how fast your tear film evaporates, the quality of oil glands in eyelids, and much more
DIABETES: leading cause of blindness in the US, can occur even in people who have “good” control of blood sugar. We can also find diabetes in patients who did not know they had it, all with an eye exam.
EYE PRESSURE Your eye fluid pressure is like the air pressure in a tire, but since your eye doesn’t have a valve stem we have an instrument that uses rebound measuring and requires no drops or air. The eye pressure helps us find a disease called glaucoma.
GLAUCOMA is caused by a normal or high fluid pressure, and can cause blindness if not treated; it has no symptoms so you don’t feel the pressure or notice any changes in your vision.
RETINA The retina is the inner lining of your eyeball, and is where blood vessels, nerves, rods, and cones join forces to let you see. Too many diseases to list can be found at the retina, including diabetes, breast cancer, colon cancer, leukemia, high blood pressure, and macular degeneration.
SPECIALIZED SERVICES
Myopia Management: & Orthokeratology: Concerned about your child becoming more nearsighted (can see up close but not far away)? We have methods to manage and slow it down, as high amounts of nearsightedness increase the risk of some eye diseases like macular degeneration, retinal detachments, and cataracts.
Contact Lens Evaluations
After your exam, we will discuss contact lens options. We carry all types of contacts, from single-use daily disposables, to astigmatism, to bifocal contacts, to the super-breathable lenses. We will assess your habits, needs, desires and come up with a plan. If you’ve never worn contacts, we will schedule your training session with Stephanie. Follow-ups may or may not be required, but if required. WEAR THE LENSES.
Dr. Moller may also do topography, which gives her a map of the hills and valleys of your cornea.
Orthokeratology: Would you like to see 24hours without glasses or contacts that dry your eyes out? Sleep in a retainer that gently and temporarily reshapes the curvature to correct your vision all day.
The evaluation fee is in addition to the exam fee and ranges from $65 to $125 for most patients. Specialized fits are higher. Retail boxes of the contacts are available to purchase and may be sent to your home for no additional charge. Our prices are competitive with 1-800 contacts, so please buy from a local small business, and we will give you replacement lenses if needed.
Hours: Tuesday through Friday 10-5ish, Saturday 10-2ish
Exams available Tuesday and Wednesday
Phone: 253-432-4303
Fax: 253-514-6719
Text only line: 541-979-1106
Email: eyecandy-optical@outlook.com