Simplicity Biker Chic(k)

upper right illustration has the bicycle prop

This vintage look from Simplicity Pattern Company is a sporty little promo from the 50s. Women's freedom and the split skirt has a long history. From the bloomer look popularized by Amelia Bloomer in the 1850s to the pantsuits of the 1970s, borrowing from menswear helped facilitate the climb up the ladder of "success."

"British explorer Richard Francis Burton, travelling across the United States in 1860 noted that he saw only one woman (whom he called a "hermaphrodite") wearing bloomers.[1] The costume was called the "American Dress" or "Reform Costume" by the women's activists that wore it. Most of the women who wore the costume were deeply involved in dress reform, abolition, temperance and the women's rights movement. Although practical, the "bloomers" were also an attempt to reform fashion since the majority of "bloomers" were also in upper to middle class and also in the public eye." excerpt from the Wikipedia link for bloomers