Lining Fabric Mills Directory

What a Lining Has to Do

Lining fabric works out of sight, and its job description is longer than most visible fabrics'. It must be smooth, so the garment slips on and off and hangs without catching on what is worn beneath. It must be durable at the points of friction - underarms, seat, pocket mouths - because a worn lining is the most common reason a good garment goes for repair. It should manage moisture and static, colour-match or deliberately contrast with the shell, and in better tailoring it becomes a signature: the flash of colour inside a sober suit. Half linings, quarter linings and full linings trade these benefits against weight and cost, and sleeved garments need a slicker lining in the sleeve than in the body or the arm will fight its way in.

Fibre choice sets the character. Viscose and its branded forms are the classic suit lining - breathable, absorbent, silk-like in hand and kind to wear next to other natural fibres. Cupro, spun from cotton linter, is the premium version, valued for the same breathability with a smoother face. Acetate offers bright colours at lower cost; polyester linings are the hardest-wearing and cheapest, at some cost in comfort, and they dominate volume clothing for that reason. Silk linings survive in bespoke work. Weaves are plain, twill or jacquard - the twill showing the fine diagonal line of classic linings, jacquards carrying woven logos and patterns for brands that treat the inside as advertising space.

Specifying and Sourcing Lining Fabric

A lining specification names the fibre, the weave, the weight (linings are light by design, and too heavy a lining drags a garment down), the width, the colour against the shell fabric, and the performance points that matter - colourfastness to perspiration and dry cleaning, anti-static finish where synthetic shells demand it, and shrinkage matched to the shell so the two do not pull against each other after cleaning. Garment makers buy lining in programme quantities against a shell range, so consistency of shade between dye lots matters more than novelty; home sewers buy the same cloth by the yard to line jackets, skirts, dresses and bags, which is why lining fabric is also a retail staple.

The six companies below are the mills this directory lists under lining fabrics - producers in India, Indonesia, China and Pakistan, each carried in this site's Fabric Mills by Name section, where the linked profile holds the company's directory record. Readers working on the inside of garments generally should also see the Interlining page - the fusible and sewn layers that give collars, cuffs and fronts their shape, a different inside component from the lining that covers them. Thank you for using the Apparel Search Fabric Mill Directory.

Lining Care and Replacement

A lining usually outlasts several cleanings of the shell before it needs attention, and its failure points are predictable: fraying at the armhole, tearing across the back vent, and shine or thinning at the seat of trousers and skirts. Dry cleaners test linings separately because a viscose lining and a wool shell accept cleaning differently, and a mismatched replacement can pucker a garment it was meant to save. When a lining is replaced, tailors match the original's weight and fibre as closely as possible and often take the chance to upgrade - a better cupro in place of a tired acetate transforms how an old jacket wears, which is why relining remains a standard, economical repair for quality clothing.

Lining Fabric Mills Listed Here