Jennifer Centeno is a California-based optician who’s been practicing for four years. Her Instagram page, Opticianista_LA is a hub of eyewear, inspirational quotes, tips on lash care and eye-related trinkets. Before becoming an optician, Centeno was a luxury retail manager and she has carried her love for the finer things in life into her practice as an optician. “Opticianista_LA is space for me to discuss my thoughts on topics ranging from frames, lens treatments, fashion, beauty, and day-to-day operations,” she said. “I love combining my experience in luxury retail, and optical because the two are really similar.”

When she started the page six months ago, Centeno’s goal was to share her day-to-day life with her colleagues. In addition to being an optician, she is also the office manager at All Eyecare Optometry so she wanted to showcase the different aspects of the many hats she wears throughout the day.

“I decided that I wanted to post my day-to-day experiences and I also wanted to post about eyewear and style. I want every concept I post to be an authentic representation of what I do on a daily basis,” she said. Opticianista LA features frames that are either in All Eyecare Optometry and are popular among clients, frames she’s looking to get into the store or are frames that just came in and she wants share with her followers. She’s posted styles from Kate Young, Jimmy Choo and Chopard which can be found in her optical and others that have caught her eye from brands such as Article One, Kirk & Kirk and Andy Wolf.

While her page represents her love for optical, Centeno has made the decision to keep her face off Opticianista_LA. Though she will post pictures of herself wearing frames in her Instastories every now and again, she finds having her pictures on the page unnecessary, so far.

“When I started the page, my main goal was to share content that was based on my everyday experiences as an office manager and optician. I find that most of my posts do not require a picture of myself as they do not always convey what I am discussing, therefore I do not really feel the need to post a picture of myself,” she told VMail Weekend. “I will post a picture of myself from time to time of me wearing a favorite frame in my stories, as I want anyone who follows my page to know that there is a real person running this account, who does work in the optical industry.”

   

Like other practitioners, Centeno chose Instagram as her medium because of its ability to connect her to other people who are equally as passionate about eyewear and eyecare as she is. “I think Instagram is the best medium because it gives me the ability to share and connect with so many people. It allows me to be creative and post from my perspective. Instagram also gives me the ability to connect with many people that have the same passion that I do for optical—it is a great way to connect and learn.”

Centeno created Opticianista_LA this past September, mere weeks before Vision Expo West and she found herself connecting with people she had made contact with online. “My favorite thing about creating this page has been the connections I have made, I started my page about a month before Vision Expo and it was really great to meet the amazing people I have been speaking to on Instagram in person. I also enjoy the opportunity to see different perspectives from others in the industry, which gives me the opportunity to learn, and that is really the best,” she stated.

Though the page is still in its early stages, Centeno hopes that visitors are able to connect with her experiences. On her end, she plans on keeping Opticianista_LA as a space to continue having fun and showcase her adventures.