What Fabric for Lining?

The lining families

• Slippery wovens — polyester lining taffeta and satin-weave linings: the jacket and skirt standard, built for glide. Charmeuse when the inside should feel as good as the outside.
• Stretch linings — a knit shell needs a lining that stretches with it: lightweight tricot, stretch mesh and power mesh (which also smooths), or self-lining with a second layer of the shell fabric.
• Breathable naturals — cotton lawn and voile for summer dresses and children's wear: no glide, all comfort.
• Swim and active — dedicated spandex-blend linings matched to the shell's stretch (see the swimwear guide).

When to line at all

Line when the shell is sheer, scratchy, loosely woven (bouclé demands it), or when the garment must slide over other clothing — jackets and straight skirts above all. Skip lining on knits that pass the opacity test, casual gathered styles, and anything where a clean-finished seam does the job; a French-seamed summer dress often needs no lining at all.

Matching lining to shell

Two rules cover most decisions. Weight: the lining must be lighter than the shell so it never dictates the drape. Behavior: stable shell, stable lining; stretch shell, stretch lining — a woven lining inside a knit dress deletes the stretch you paid for. Color: match for solidity, nude for sheers you want to read as skin, contrast when the flash of interior is a design note.