Classic one-piece ski suits

Adults wearing ski suits - now that’s a sight you don’t see very often on the slopes these days. They've fallen out of fashion in a major way. Twenty years ago the Degre 7 ski suit was the>/i> must have clothing item, complete of course with obligatory loud colours.

Now though, you only see the odd seasoned recreational skier wearing a suit on ski vacations – and they’re usually the ones who still use ‘skinny skis’ with great style. A sighting of a garish fluorescent one-piece is even rarer.

Dare you admit to having a ‘vintage’ 1980s glowing garment somewhere amongst your old gear?! Admittedly these did make the wearer easy to spot in a white-out, though they could be pretty scary in broad daylight.

Why have they fallen out of fashion with adults?
Yes they’re warm, yes they keep the snow out if you decide to have a snowman moment and wipe-out in spectacular style. And if you’ve a slender figure you can look stylish (if that’s important to you – we’re more interested in the skiing, to be honest!).

But what they gain on warmth and comfort, they lose on versatility. Let’s say you pop into a mountain restaurant for a hot chocolate pit-stop – and now you’re rapidly getting too warm. It’s quite a performance to wriggle out of the top part without getting the sleeves tangled. Then the sleeves flap about, so you end up with them tied around your waist and feeling just as warm as you were before.

And then when it’s time to go, you’re desperately trying to make sure the whole thing doesn’t fall down whilst wriggling back into it again.

Getting a good fit
No problem if you’re with a slender, athletic physique. Not so for the more generously proportioned skier who will find them a rather unflattering garment. Get a good fit around the seat and you find the top too baggy or legs too long. Ski suits seem to accentuate the bits you’d normally want to hide.

So for what it’s worth, they're great for small children (the less garments to get them into, the better), but for us, we prefer a jacket and pants combination.

Although, it would be worth digging out the old colourful one for future family ski holidays just to see the look of horror and embarrassment on our children’s faces!

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