What was fashion in 1912?

For the fashionable ladies, this was a time of ankle-length skirts, parasols, and large broad-brimmed hats. Women also tended to wear a stiff girdle underneath. This meant that you could not comfortably sit in a chair; women perched on the edge of the seat, instead. Look at pictures of the period, and this is what you see.

Skirts were long, even when playing tennis. In fact, a woman's free hand when playing tennis (the one not holding the racquet) was supposed to hike the skirt so as not to trip!

Practicality was not the issue. The point was to show off that your husband had a comfortable income, and that you didn't have to work.