Machine washing underlined garments?

[SunnyElle]

Hello,
I'm sewing a linen cardigan-type jacket/top for my daughter and want to underline it so it 1) has more body and 2) won't wrinkle so much. The thing is: I'm dry-clean adverse. I just hate going to the dry cleaners! If I underline with cotton batiste, can I machine wash it on gentle? What about silk? I know it is recommended to dry clean silk, but I've seen many websites that say you can machine wash silk in cool water with the gentle cycle. Or what about a fusible underlining? The top is a dark blue linen, so I want to underline with something other than white (that'll stick out like a sore thumb). I do plan to bias bind the seam allowances inside the top. Maybe I should just line the garment with cotton??? Or should I not bother with underling or lining? I want the top to have some structure, though, and linen is going to get softer and softer as I continue to wash it. I've already washed the yardage twice to shrink it and it's quite soft. My main concern is being able to wash it in the washer. It's for a 3 yr old, so it'll get washed a lot. Suggestions???

[AnnRowley]

I would use well washed cotton lawn or batiste as an underlining - definitely not silk for a three-year old!  As long as both the fabrics are pre shrunk machine washing shouldn't be a problem.

You will find the ironing much easier if you underline rather than line - in fact I wouldn't recommend washing a lined jacket - the ironing is such a problem!

I'm not sure how much it will reduce wrinkling, but does that really matter for a small child?

Let us know how you get on...