Fashion fit for the Winter Olympics (sort of) from the Country Life Archive

The 2026 Winter Olympic Games are well underway in the deeply fashionable city of Milan, which means that it would be remiss not to look back through the Country Life archives to see what the fashionable winter sports goers of yesteryear were wearing on the slopes and the ice rinks of Europe.

So, without further ado, button your salopettes and tighten your goggles for a gentle downhill ski through memory lane.

The 1900s

One has to feel for all Edwardian ladies. The outfits that it was suggested they wear for skiing and ice-skating, though undeniably elegant, were ridiculously impractical.

How on earth did anyone manage more than a few steps trussed up in a corset and with those perilously long skirts?

The 1910s

Though the corseted waist have been dispensed of in this picture, the ankle-length skirts are still very much on the scene.

Still, this trio of London ladies appear to be enjoying the delights of winter in the capital — when the ice still froze and we weren’t pummelled by incessant rain.

The 1920s

Praise be to Burberry, who came to our collective rescue in the 1920s with something beginning to resemble practical sporting attire.

The British-born brand manufactured warm woollen sweaters in still-fashionable prints and trousers (which only gained mainstream acceptance among women during the First World War) for snowy conditions.

The 1930s

The 1930s presented us with two very distinctive offerings. The left, again from Burberry, is a (more) practical, no-nonsense outfit for tackling the slopes; the right, from Schiaparelli, is an uber-glamorous ensemble that looks like it belongs inside the wardrobe of Marlene Dietrich.

The 1940s

Following the Second World War, outfits, for a time at least, were a little more muted, but somehow still far from practical.

The one on the left, from Daly’s of Glasgow, features a mini skirt, that I suppose is more practical for skating in. Made from thick corduroy, it was less likely to fly up, but probably a tad uncomfortable if you fell in it. The Lilywhites proofed-cotton jacket with its fold-away hood looks more useful — but cotton in the snow, really?

The 1950s

What this lacks in glamour it makes up for (finally) in practicality and versatility. The pom poms are a playful touch.

The 1960s

Glamour was finally back on the catwalk and the slopes. Somehow the practicality has already gone missing though.

The outfit on the left features knitted trousers, which look impeccable on the model, but would fare terribly in the snow.

The 1970s

Huzzah! We have arrived at the end of our tour through the Archive and, finally, a bold check skiing outfit that is actually waterproof. My work here is done.