Hitomezashi is a Japanese stitching technique which produces beautiful and unexpected patterns and which has only recently been studied mathematically. In this talk, I will show how hitomezashi patterns can be linked to real algebraic curves via Viro's patchworking construction. I will also propose a generalisation of hitomezashi patterns to higher dimensions and explain how, with a bit of work, we can maintain a connection to real algebraic geometry in the case of surfaces. In any dimension hitomezashi patterns are examples of positive parts of real tropical hypersurfaces. This is based on joint work with Jules Chenal.