STORY OF THE STYLE: MARGARET’S FLORAL DRESS

We wanted Untamed Territory to channel the delicate balance of fearless and feminine that was required on the wagon trail, and to us, this dress is both.

“I think one of the things that resonated with me most about 1883 is that I could see myself in both Elsa and Margaret,” Cheryl explained. “Obviously, Elsa has a little more of that teenage angst, but it’s the challenging of the status quo and not succumbing to society’s arbitrary rules and preconceived prejudices that makes her such an admirable ingenue and one that transcends age. Naturally, at this stage in my life, I can identify a lot with Margaret as well, the mother bear, the survival instinct, the ‘impossible is nothing and family is everything’ mentality. And I love that she still has the same fiery passion that Elsa had – it might have been stuffed down and stifled by society, but it was there.”

It was this duality of spirit and practicality that spurred the design inspiration for Margaret’s Floral Dress.

“There are three important aesthetic elements at work here,” Cheryl explained. “On the one hand, I wanted it to embody the proper femininity she was clinging to from the life she left behind, the buttoned-up and bustled Margaret that boarded the train in the beginning, so that’s where the silhouette comes into play – the gathered tiers and shoulders for fuller volume, the collar, and the lace trim, as well as the floral print. At the same time, we wanted it to be reflective of the new reality she was facing, so the colors are more muted, the flowers are more prairie wildflower than bright blooms. And then the length, above the knee as opposed to floor length is a nod to the eventual adoption of practicality, of function over form that faced everyone living the wagon-trail life.”