Vintage Sportswear - 1936

A typical women's riding habit from the 1930s.

When you think of clothing in the 1930s, your mind probably conjures up an image of a tall slender woman wearing a slinky bias cut evening gown. Or maybe you picture her in a floral print tea dress made of a sheer cotton or rayon that floats over a slip. But sportswear was also an essential part of most women's wardrobes. Sweater knits were very popular, as were split skirts and ski pants. Here's a look at some sportswear outfits from 1936.

For hunting and fishing, women wore menswear inspired wool suits with split skirts.

Instead of boots, spats were worn over the shoes to protect the lower legs
when walking in the woods.

A typical ski jacket and pants in heavy wool loden cloth.

Heavy wools like this fell out of favor for skiwear by the 1940s,
as snow tended to clump and stick to the fabric.

That probably wasn't a concern if you could afford fur ski clothes!

Split skirts were also popular for skating, whether on the pavement or the ice.

Here, a suggested outfit for roller skating in New York consisted of a turtleneck sweater, plaid culottes, a matching hat and belt, plaid socks, and suede oxford shoes. Sounds like fun to me!