I love simple and chic, but part of me will never be able to resist an unconventional lining. A pop of color or vibrant print will always be one of my favorite ways to make a garment my own. For this Hydrus Coat redux, I kept it classic on the outside with a sleek wool coating, but I scoured Mood’s cotton prints for the perfect surprise lining. This then got me thinking – how do you choose the best fabric for an unconventional garment lining?
Purchase Materials Used Below:
Purchase Materials Used Below:
Purchase Materials Used Below:
First, let's cover some traditional lining options.
Silk Linings
Silk is one of the first things everyone thinks of when it comes to lining a garment. It’s soft, gorgeous, and both looks and feels luxurious. Typically, you’d line a gown or high-end garment with a silk charmeuse, crepe, satin, or habotai.
Viscose/Rayon Linings
Often more affordable than silk, viscose or rayon fabrics retain silk’s softness and breathability without breaking the bank. You can find them in twill grounds, but you can also check out Bemberg and cupro linings for a similar feel.
But what kind of non-traditional fabrics can be used to line a garment?
The first rule of thumb when it comes to lining a garment is that your lining fabric should be of a similar or (more ideally) lighter weight than the main fabric. Otherwise you’d be looking at a finished garment that’s far too bulky to actually wear.
Because of this, you’re left with a ton of options, particularly if you’re sewing outerwear. For heavier garments that use coatings or sturdy twill, you can go a bit more outside the box with a cotton voile, poplin, or even a sateen (like I used for my coat above). This also opens the door to quilted fabrics or new textures such as a short-piled faux fur!
For more lightweight garments, such as dresses, you’ll want to look at lighter grounds as well. This means lawn, voile, or even poplin for the most part. For fabrics that glide a bit better, take a look at crepe de chine.
Whatever you end up choosing, just keep in mind what kind of care instructions you’re dealing with. Many coatings are dry clean only, so you’ll have a lot of leeway with lining options there, but if you’re looking to line your favorite twill jacket that can get tossed in wash, you’ll likely want to stick to cotton or polyester prints when it comes to more unconventional linings with that one.
Have any lining tips of your own? Leave them in the comments below!
4 comments
cool
Lo estuve buscando por mucho tiempo, es hermoso
Quiero tenerlo ya
Especial para la epoca