Fashion brand CHARLES JEFFREY LOVERBOY presented its Fall Winter 2023.24 Collection that celebrates Scotland, workers, and the renaissance, on Sunday, January 15th, during the ongoing Milan Fashion Week. The Engine Room collection was inspired by the work of Scottish artist and playwright John Byrne, most notably by Byrne’s 1987 play The Slab Boys Trilogy. The collection, that includes three parts Workers, Posers, and Snakes, tells a story of Ajuka – the floating city in the sky. The workers, scooped up from the wasteland below, keep the city from falling from the sky by feeding the furnaces. The best workers are granted citizenship and the chance of a fresh start. But the Engine Room is also a trap, many spend a lifetime toiling there, trying and failing to escape, losing their minds in the process.
FALL WINTER 2023.24 COLLECTIONS
“First we meet the Workers. Bedecked in warm layers, protective gear and reworked staples, their outfits reflect their arduous conditions they endure. Unexpected embellishments recall the trinkets made by magpie-eyed mudlarkers, highlighting the Workers’ ingenuity in the face of adversity. Part two introduces us to the Posers, former workers who now set the sartorial agenda in Ajuka, populating the city’s many luxury boutiques. Sleek tailoring, oversized ruffles and ornate prints characterise their clothing, alongside fearsome, claw-footed footwear.
Finally, we meet the Snakes, Ajuka’s arch gossip merchants who disseminate the city’s news. Their uniform is heavily influenced by the tools of their trade and their medium of choice – the newspaper. A desaturated palette provides a base for tailored tweeds and a scribbled star motif, later giving way to stark, soulless white and newsprint accents.” – Charles Jeffrey Loverboy
Creative Director – Charles Jeffrey
Stylist – Ben Schofield
Set Designer – David Curtis-Ring
Casting – Sabrina Mastrangelo Street People Casting
Hair – Claire Moore for Wella
Make-Up – Terry Barber for Mac Cosmetics
Movement Director – Kate Coyne
Production – Daniel Hettmann
Lighting – Hydra Design
Runway Soundtrack – Oliver Sim “Sensitive Child” Charles Jeffrey Loverboy Remix Produced by: Tom Furse
Finale Soundtrack “Charles Jeffrey” by Ray Laurel
