How I embroidered the sleeves for M Walking on the Water's special edition vinyl release - and why embroidery belongs in the music world.
Texture on Texture
There are projects that remind you why you do what you do. Project "e" is one of them.
When my friend Markus - founder of M Walking on the Water - approached me about collaborating on a special edition release for their record "e", I knew immediately this was going to be something different. Not just another merch piece. Something that would make the music feel the way it sounds: intentional, tactile, and alive.
The concept was as simple as it was bold. The record sleeve would be covered in fake donkey fur - already a statement on its own. On top: a single embroidered "e", echoing the album title. No loud branding, no overcrowded design. Just texture on texture, and the quiet confidence of a craft done well.
For artists and labels looking for truly luxurious, limited-edition merchandise, this kind of thinking is exactly what sets a release apart. Vinyl is already a physical, tactile medium - embroidery takes that a step further. You don't just own the music. You feel it before you even hear it.
When Craft Meets Craft
Great projects rarely happen alone. My friend Lili handled the cut and sew - she constructed the sleeves themselves, the precision work that gives a custom piece its structure and finish. Once the sleeves were ready, they came to me.
This kind of collaboration between craft disciplines is something I genuinely believe in. Embroidery doesn't exist in isolation - it lives on objects, garments, and surfaces that someone else has carefully made. When the handwork is done well at every stage, the final result carries that care.
And there's something fitting about this particular project. M Walking on the Water are a Krefeld band. I work from Krefeld. A special edition release should feel like it comes from somewhere - and this one does.
ZSK Sprint 7 and the MightyHoop Freestyle
For the embroidery, I worked on my ZSK Sprint 7 - a professional machine embroidery system built for exactly this kind of precise, high-quality output. The stitch construction was deliberately kept clean:
- A running underlay to anchor the stitching into the fur
- A fill underlay to tack down the fur fibres and create a stable base
- A simple fill stitch on top for the letter itself
Placement on the fur sleeve could have been tricky, but the MightyHoop Freestyle made it effortless. For anyone working with non-standard materials or irregular shapes, this hooping system is genuinely a game-changer. Precision without damaging delicate or textured fabrics.
You Already Feel It
When the first sleeve was finished, I slid a record in - a Lou Reed LP I had nearby - and placed it on my shelf. Then I pulled it out again.
That moment told me everything.
"The weight of the sleeve, the soft resistance of the fur, the slight raise of the embroidered 'e' under your fingertips - it felt precious. Not precious in a fragile way. Precious in the way that something handcrafted and considered always feels: like someone cared enough to make it more than it needed to be."
That is what embroidery does. It adds a dimension that print, foil, or sticker can never replicate. It is felt before it is seen.
Embroidery Belongs in the Music World
As someone who works at the intersection of craft and design in Krefeld - right in the heart of the Rhine-Ruhr region, with its deep textile history - I'm always looking for contexts where embroidery can do something unexpected.
Music merchandise is one of the most underexplored territories for premium embroidery. Most releases default to printed sleeves, standard tote bags, or screen-printed shirts. But for artists who want their physical release to carry the same weight as the music itself, embroidery opens up a completely different conversation.
- Tactile luxury - no other finishing technique replicates the raised, dimensional feel of embroidery on a surface.
- Durability - embroidered details age beautifully. They don't peel, fade, or wash out. They become part of the object.
- Exclusivity - limited runs feel genuinely limited when every piece involves real craft and human attention.
- A story - the process itself becomes part of the release narrative, something to share, document, and remember.