Aspects of the disclosure are directed to a brush seal comprising: a first plate, a wire mesh adjacent the first plate, a bristle pack adjacent the wire mesh, and a second plate adjacent the bristle pack. Aspects of the disclosure are directed to a method comprising: positioning a wire mesh adjacent to a first plate, positioning a bristle pack adjacent to the wire mesh, positioning a second plate adjacent to the bristle pack, applying a toolset to hold the first plate, the wire mesh, the bristle pack, and the second plate in a stack-up, and performing an operation to form a brush seal from the stack-up of the first plate, the wire mesh, the bristle pack, and the second plate.