The Associated Press
Kazuo Kawasaki, the Japanese designer of Sarah Palin's glasses, is grateful to the Republican vice-presidential candidate for making his product famous.

"She is very good looking. She would look good in any glasses," Kawasaki said Wednesday of Palin at a Tokyo store operated by Masunaga Optical Manufacturing Co., which makes the clear-rim MP-704.

The glasses, made of super-light and non-allergenic metal called titanium, have become all the rage since the 44-year-old Alaskan governor emerged on the U.S. national political scene as John McCain's surprise choice for running mate.

The company, based in Fukui Prefecture, central Japan, usually makes 12,000 MP-704 glasses in an 18-month period.

Thanks to Palin, it has already received 9,000 global orders, mostly from the United States, in the last 10 days, says Masunaga store chief Akira Nagayama.

According to Nagayama, the glasses don't need any screws and instead use a thin metal strip similar to a paper clip to attach the lens to the frame, offering a clearer view for the wearer.

Masunaga, which racks up $19 million US in annual sales, including glasses from other designers, sells the MP-704 in the United States through Italee Optics Inc., a Los Angeles distributor. The glasses, which cost about $320 in Japan, go for around $400 US.

Kawasaki said he shares what he sees as some common political sentiments with Palin.

"I am quite right wing," said Kawasaki, a long-haired soft-spoken man proudly wearing the updated version of the MP-704, the MP-705. "I am a nationalist in the sense I believe in the
Japanese esthetic."

An award-winning designer who has contributed to the permanent collection at the Museum of Modern Art in New York, Kawasaki has seen his glasses on celebrities before, including former U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell and actress Whoopi Goldberg.

But he has never got quite the stunning reception as he has had this time around with Palin.

"I want to say, 'Thank you,' to Ms. Palin," he said with a smile. "I want people to realize how fantastic Made in Japan technology can be."

Kawasaki, who believes design offers solutions to social problems, not just trendy appearances, is careful to add he isn't taking sides in the presidential race.

"Whether it becomes Mr. [Barack] Obama or Mr. McCain, I want to ask him to build peace in the international order," he said.