The London Lounge

I have some 8oz worsted summer suits at the tailor for some minor alterations. I am also thinking of removing the sleeve lining to make the jacket cooler. The jacket is half-lined in the back at the moment.

What would be the pros and cons of removing sleeve lining? Would it impair durability of the sleeves?

The biggest con is that your arms won't slide into the sleeves so easily, and that the sleeves will "catch" on the shirt fabric and bunch.

A friend who posts here recently had an unlined coat made with no sleeve lining. But the cloth was unusual: a mohair/wool woven like a fresco. It is "smooth" and almost shiney, so there is no catching. I am not sure it would work well for other cloths.

I have a completely unlined lightweight worsted cashmere sportcoat. It is a little bit of a pain to slide the arms in, but after that it is not a problem.

I don't think that I would have a jacket made this way, but I saw this one and liked it.

How much difference in hot weather comfort would it make anyway to remove sleeve liners? I suspect minimal.

Nevertheless, unlined sleeves seem to be de riguer for linen and cotton Summer coats.

I suspect every bit counts in Hong Kong summer.

You could also try to use a more lightweight lining instead of the Satin weaves commonly chosen.

uppercase wrote:How much difference in hot weather comfort would it make anyway to remove sleeve liners? I suspect minimal.

Nevertheless, unlined sleeves seem to be de riguer for linen and cotton Summer coats.

Less than no difference. An unlined wool sleeve actually feels warmer to me than a lined one. Go figure.

After removing the sleeve lining a couple of issues will occur. The turn up at the sleeve bottom will have to be finished in a new way to make the hem look finished on the inside and keep your hand from catching it as you put your arm thru. A well made jacket will have wigan or interlining of some sort to deal with at the opening. At the top of the sleeve the lining is covering the unfinished seams of the sleeve and jacket along with the sleeve head and shoulder pad. Sometimes these seams can be covered with a bias strip of lining used as a taped covering of these seams and no sleeve head or pad is used. I have only seen this in jackets with no lining and minimal construction, a shirt jacket type construction. All this is not easy to do and will compromise the finished look of the shoulder and sleeve. Really, too much work involved to be practical. Much to do for not much gain, IMHO. Of all the areas covered by lining in a jacket, the sleeves benefit the most by being lined.

For my part, I would be concerned about sweating under the arms through my shirt sleeves and marking the jacket. I know in summer here, the lining of my coats is often a touch damp when I take it off...