Herbs to Cross Stitch for Your Kitchen

March 10, 2026 by Sarah White

Even though we’re getting close to spring, I’m not quite ready to call it planting time where I live. I am, however, quite ready to have fresh herbs right outside my door again. Maybe for now I just have to settle for some herb cross stitch patterns.

This design from Mary Stitching is a study in green, with 12 different herbs worked in five colors. It’s so interesting how different they all look even with a limited color selection. This one is 277 by 279 stitches if you cross stitch the whole thing, but you can always pull out your favorite herbs to stitch individually. If you make the whole thing in one piece on 14 count fabric it comes out to 17.1 by 16.1 inches, or 43.4 by 41 cm. The pattern has measurements for other counts, too, if you want to make it smaller.

Another one you can stitch all together or make smaller pieces is this herbal teacup collection from Dots and Spots Shop. These aren’t strictly all herbs; there are some flowers in there, too, but I’ll allow it because I think it’s pretty. This project uses 26 colors if you stitch the whole thing, and runs to 209 by 312 stitches. On 14 count fabric that’s 14.92 by 22.28 inches, or 37.9 by 56.6 cm. This one also has suggestions for smaller counts to make a slightly smaller project.

Need help keeping track of which herbs and spices do what for your kitchen witch projects? This kitchen witchery chart from Cross Stitch For You should help you out. Now you know that basil is good for courage, money, wisdom and protection, and is also delicious. This project uses 29 colors and measures 180 by 220 stitches. That’s 12.86 by 15.7 inches, or 32.66 by 39.91 cm, when worked on 14 count fabric.

And if you’re gearing up for planting some herbs in a window box, you can embellish it with these cross stitch plant markers from Susan Bates via gathered. These pretty designs for rosemary, chive, sage and thyme show the herbs in bloom and give us hope for growing things to come.

Have you read?

How to Cross Stitch a Table Cloth

Most of the cross stitch projects I make are pretty small and not something I would consider heirloom quality (though I am working on a big project for my daughter that I hope to have done for her high school graduation in two years that I hope is something she’ll want to keep forever, but that’s another story).

But it is definitely possible to cross stitch projects that will stay around for generations, and one prime example of that is a cross-stitched linen tablecloth.

Linen tablecloths are classic, while stitching one can be a big project, depending on the size of your table, it doesn’t have to be really complicated.

Koekoek has a good, detailed post about figuring out how much linen you would need to make a tablecloth that you can cross stitch and/or embroider on (they also sell tablecloth linen in their shop if you don’t already have some or a linen tablecloth you already use). Of course for a project like this you’d want the best fabric you can find and afford, because you’ll be stitching it for a long time and hopefully using it for years.

The post walks through how to measure your table and determine how much fabric you’ll need including the drop you’ll want and hems. It includes the math for rectangular and square tables as well as circular tables, which helps take the guesswork out of buying fabric. It also talks about preparing the fabric and making mitered corners if you have a square or rectangular table, which will help the tablecloth sit nicely on your table.

The tutorial doesn’t include specific patterns to use for your tablecloth, but it does advise keeping it simple because this is a really big project. You can start with a motif in the center or doing borders, and this is a project you can add to through the years by, say, stitching a symbol for each family member or adding names, wedding dates, etc. and making it a real record of your family.

Would you ever cross stitch a tablecloth or have you done so? I’d love to hear about it!

[Photo: Koekoek]