JMM combines historical motifs and luxury materials to create unique, limited-edition frames. The store features authentic museum-quality pieces, like Navajo rugs dating back from 1890 through 1900 and Lakota quilled moccasins.
The brand’s most coveted styles sell out before they can even be restocked, making them more exclusive than your standard designer pair of sunglasses. But what makes them so expensive?
1. The Materials
Los Angeles-based Jacques Marie Mage (pronounced Mah-je) produces the kind of limited edition frames that have your friends calling you “a collector.” From their studio in LA’s Lafayette Park, where the iconic palm trees and historic buildings inspire their collection, JMM creates collector-driven eyewear that seamlessly blends historical references with precious materials and modern production practices.
JMM specializes in micro-production, which allows them to abide by the highest ethical production standards for their workers and the environment. They work with acetate, titanium and rare, precious metals to create impeccably crafted spectacles that elegantly infuse historical motifs and a contemporary sensibility.
Working closely with their esteemed partners in Japan and Italy, they craft unique sculptural frames with unsurpassed attention to both functional and aesthetic details. Each pair of Jacques Marie Mage spectacles tells a story, inspired by cultural icons and artistic movements from modern history.
2. The Craftsmanship
In an era where everything seems to be produced on an industrial scale, JAM has maintained a dedication to the craft and craftsmanship that makes their products special. The brand works in small production runs, using premium materials and incorporating historical motifs to produce eyewear that is not only desirable, but coveted.
Mage’s design tastes skew neoclassical (he collects Napoleonic military regalia), but the resulting frames are more than just a tribute to a bygone era. The spectacles are like portals, transporting the wearer to a dream-like depiction of a glamorized past.
The brand’s limited editions are the result of a close collaboration with tastemakers. For example, their newest pair of sunglasses with Alanui, the Topanga frame, was inspired by the cultural heritage of the American Southwest. The result is a limited-edition collection that pays homage to the arts and crafts of the region with sterling silver signature arrowhead front pins and real turquoise inlays.
3. The Design
Founded in 2020, Jacques Marie Mage produces limited-edition designer goods that specialize in the micro-production of artisanal eyewear. The Los Angeles-based brand designs bold, sculptural frames and handcrafts them with the help of partners in Japan and Italy. The brand’s design language draws inspiration from across continents, cultures, and generations to create sophisticated statement pieces that are playful and meaningfully idiosyncratic.
Designed not to appeal to everyone, JMM’s frames evoke the cultural icons and artistic movements that inspired them, presenting a forward-looking take on visual empowerment. The resulting products fuse innovative, technical construction with timeless style and exquisite materials.
With a bespoke approach to design, a strict focus on quality, and a refusal to abide by the rules of fast fashion, the brand is truly one-of-a-kind. Their sleek heirlooms serve as a modern remnant of post-war Paris—a time when poets, musicians, artists, and thinkers all converged at the infamous jazz cafes of Saint Germain des Prés.
4. The Limited Editions
Unlike mass-produced prints which can be reproduced indefinitely, each Jacques Marie Mage frame is printed in micro batches. This means that only a certain number of frames are made, which creates an aura of exclusivity.
Founded in 2014 by Jerome Mage, JMM designs and handcrafts premium glasses. The brand draws inspiration from local culture, as well as cultural icons and artistic movements throughout history. The result is a collection of modern heirlooms that embody the spirit and aesthetic of their namesake designer.
Conclusion:
The company also collaborates with tastemakers to create limited-edition styles. Their collaboration with Kewa Pueblo artist Francisco Bailon resulted in the stunning Topanga style, which features arrowhead front pins and real turquoise inlays. The company also worked with legendary rancher Lou Doillon to create the elegant Byron style, which evokes the natural beauty and cowboy heritage of Jackson Hole.
