Brown fiber

The fibrous husks are soaked in pits or nets in a slow-moving body of water to swell and soften the fibers. The long bristle fibers are separated from the shorter mattress fibers underneath the nut’s skin through a process known as wet-milling. The mattress fibers are filtered to remove dirt and other rubbish, dried in the sun and packed into bales. The coir fiber is elastic enough to twist without breaking, but it holds a curl as though permanently waved. The longer bristle fiber is washed in clean water and then dried before being tied into bundles or hanks. Then it may be cleaned and ‘hackled’ by steel combs to straighten the fibers and remove any shorter fiber pieces.