With a backstory that would make even the most storied of Jack Kerouac characters seem unadventurous in comparison, Nick Fouquet is probably the most interesting milliner to have ever lived. He was born in the US but moved to the south of France for eight years as a child before moving back to Florida, getting kicked out of school, and spending more than a few years as a road-bound bohemian where, at some point, he learned the art of hat-making from an actual well-weathered cowboy.
He claims that he’s part-human, part-animal and that he’s a bit like a French Huckleberry Finn but, also, very much a gentleman. Oh yeah, and he’s also somehow managed to make traditionally-crafted, beaver pelt wide-brimmed hats a sexy and hugely in-demand fashion accessory. Do you know that impressively tall hat Pharell Williams wears to award ceremonies? That’s Nick’s handy work.
So what’s all this talk of hats got to do with independent eyewear? Well, hold onto your felt-lined Stetson there son, that’s where our favourite heritage-seeped eyewear connoisseur, Jacques Marie Mage comes in. The pair bonded over their shared French heritage and their shared love of traditional, craft-rooted fashion pieces and decided that they should probably get together to work on something. The resulting collaboration is finally here and, as well as a hat, it features a pair of highly-limited and ultra-elegant Aviator sunglasses frames - the Jacques Marie Mage P.C.H. - that we just so happen to have in stock here at Seen.
Taking their name from an abbreviation of the West Coast’s most travelled road, the Pacific Coast Highway, the P.C.H. frames feature a triple colour gradient fade lens which was inspired by the array of colours in a photo Nick Fouquet took of the sun setting over the Pacific. Achieved by hand-dipping the lenses in various ink baths, the frames allow their wearers to near-enough-experience the beauty of a Southern California sunset from anywhere in the world - even under the greying Autumn skies of south Manchester.
In case you were wondering: yes, these frames are also handmade in Japan by master craftsmen like the rest of Jacques Marie Mage’s collection (and many of the frames by our other favourite brands too). What makes the P.C.H. frames in Green that little bit extra-special is the custom Takiron acetate colouring, made especially to match Nick Fouquet’s signature green. And yeah, it looks really quite nice.
Those with a well-refined palette for all things Jacques Marie Mage will have probably started searching out those touches of decadence that Mr. Marie Mage usually sprinkles artfully throughout his eyewear. Well, they’re there. There’s the signature silver arrowhead front pins, silver hairline-engraved wire core, and, for good measure, some custom silver hinges with spur-shaped rivets.
All in all, Nick Fouquet and Jacques Marie Mage have created some pretty special Aviator sunglasses here. As well as being super nice, they’re super limited. Shop them online below or nip into Seen HQ in Manchester to check them out in real life. You best be quick though.
