In this special interview, Seen Opticians Head Honcho catches up with Jacques Marie Mage founder, Jerome Mage. As most of you know, a chat with Jacques Marie Mage founder Jerome Mage has been pretty high up my bucket list for a while. Over the last ten years or so he’s almost singlehandedly changed the luxury eyewear game. The coveting of Japanese craftsmanship. The production of detail-rich pieces interwoven with stories and history. Timeless nature of eyewear design. It was all pieced together by Jerome and his brand Jacques Marie Mage. And honestly, they have created the greatest excitemen ..read more

Not many bands wore sunglasses quite as well as the Velvet Underground. John Cale’s black wayfarers… Moe Tucker’s elliptical specs… and that’s before we mention Andy Warhol and Nico… but perhaps the most boundary-pushing glasses-wearer of the bunch was the late, great Lou Reed. Even in his pre-glasses-wearing early years, Reed was already well on the way to becoming an eyewear icon—naming his first band ‘The Shades’. Although early photos of him playing show a relatively straight-laced teenager, dressed in button-down shirts and cable-knit sweaters, the classic Ivy League uniform of a student ..read more

It goes without saying that eyes are pretty useful—so it makes sense to keep them as healthy as possible. That’s why we’ve come up with a few simple tips for keeping those peepers in tip-top shape—and whilst we know it’s hard to implement all of these 24 hours a day, even if you just manage to stick to a few of these then it can make a big difference.  Without further rambling, here you go… Get a Good Night’s Sleep Sleep is important. It’s the time your eyes (and your body) get a chance to revitalise, recover, and recuperate—which means that if you’re not spending enough time in the land ..read more

I’ve been thinking a lot about city centres recently. Well, why wouldn’t I? I spend most of my life in one and often travel to others. They play a key role in my life. When I want to be inspired by arts and culture, the city’s cultural hubs are my first port of call. The best places to eat, places to drink are right there. For me, city centres are where the exciting happenings happen. And the real magic in a city centre is the people. I’m a bit of a people watcher. When I find myself in a new city, I get as much pleasure from viewing a piece of artwork or a famous sight as I do from seeing th ..read more

For this edition of As Seen in Manchester from a couple of years back, we caught up with a particularly interesting chap called Gus Greensmith. Not only is Gus a regular face here at Seen Opticians — often popping in for a pair of sunglasses — but he also happens to be one of the youngest rally drivers currently driving in the World Rally Championship. We rang him up as he prepared for the 2021 season to talk about his early days racing go-karts, how he gets in the zone and his love of swanky eyewear... How did you get into rally driving? It’s not like football where you can just go and kick a ..read more

What makes an icon? Is it someone universally admired? Or someone with qualities that we’d all aspire for? In the case of Kendall Roy—the expectant heir to a media fortune in Succession—played expertly by Jeremy Strong, we’re not quite sure. Over the last four seasons of the mega-hit US drama, he’s definitely attained icon status, but when you dissect his character and his less-than-admirable qualities, he’s not exactly the kind of person you’d hope to emulate. Maybe it’s something to do with those sunglasses? In the same way we were happy to overlook Don Draper’s endless imperfections because ..read more

Coming direct from LA, the land of 3246 hours of annual sunshine, more than double that of our home town Manchester, Garrett Leight’s Spring/Summer collection is normally pumped full of lots of well-needed, sun-kissed positivity. This year it looks like they've jacked it up further still, deeming the SS23 collection as their interpretation of mid-21st century design, designing frames with an ‘optimistic eye on the future’. The result is a collection of eyewear that combines future-proof thinking and time-honoured design. Some frames, like the OG Freddy P and the Hercules ..read more

If you’ve been down to our shop recently, you’ll have probably noticed the big ol’ mural we’ve had painted on the side of our establishment. The mural in question was the work of none other than Nick ‘Hammo’ Hamilton—an artist and illustrator whose unique characters can be seen everywhere in Manchester, from schools to shop shutters. Whilst he was around, Hammo also lent his skills to a highly limited run of cleaning cloths for us too which are available right now. And that’s not all—we also managed to collar him for a quick chin-wag. If you ever wondered how people paint murals, then pour you ..read more

Cutler and Gross’s latest collection, The After Party, has arrived. A fitting follow-up to the club culture-inspired collection from earlier this year, it takes its pointers from the heady, hedonistic nights of 80’s London. Big frames, bright colours and distinctive details are in, subtlety and inhibitions are out. The collection showcases showy specs and sunglasses. There’s a suitably rambunctious archive design originally picked out by long-time C&G customer, Elton John — The ‘9126 Oversize Sun.’ New Rouge and Fuchsia colourways are more pop than Wham! at their peak. And the toned down b ..read more

It’s fair to say that Jacques Marie Mage has a pretty passionate fanbase. Whether it’s their unique designs, their quality craftsmanship or their super-limited nature, there’s something about the Californian brand that commands a cult-like following of eyewear obsessives.  One such obsessive is KaL MichaeL, a San Francisco-based software designer who as well as owning an enviable collection of JMM glasses, also gives back to the community—running the Jacques Marie Mage Facebook group which helps connect fans of the brand from around the globe.  As one of the brand’s most dedicated su ..read more