Dreamcatcher is a guardian of sleep in the traditional culture of the North American Indians. It attracts good spirits of dreams, scaring of the ‘bad’ – they entangled in the web and dissolve with the first rays of the sun. Same time good spirits, knowing the right way, gently gliding over the feathers, down to the sleeping, carrying bright, serene dreams. Such a network is usually hung where people sleep, so it did not miss nightmares and bad thoughts that can overcome while sleeping. Dreamcatcher will be a wonderful birthday gifts for friends and loved ones.

You can use all natural materials: wood hoop, wool thread, cotton, flax, horse hair, leather and suede, beads of wood, stone or glass. Most importantly – avoid synthetics.

Feathers must be chosen based on the gender of the individual, which is intended Dreamcatcher. Cock, pheasant, eagle and all other daytime predators (falcon, hawk, buzzard, etc.) – it’s bird with male energy, symbolically associated with the Sun, Yang energy. Owl, guinea fowl, duck, partridge – birds associated with feminine energy. However, if you – a woman, but you wish to use any of the ‘male’ birds, then use such a feathers even preferable. Pictured below give examples of feathers, which I have in stocks:

1. The feathers of an eagle and buzzard

2. Pheasant feathers

3. Short-eared owl

4. Guinea Fowl

5. Painted rooster feathers

6. Marabu

Should be used only those natural stones that exert good influence on sleep, protect people from the evil eye, as well as those that are your personal stones, talismans. Suitable for Dreamcatcher stones: amethyst, black agate, onyx, cat’s eye, fluorite, labradorite (spectrolite), charoite, jasper, amber, coral, rose quartz, serpentine, malachite.

Hoop. You can buy a wooden hoop, but it is best to bend willow branch. This is best do before the onset of cold weather, while more juice flows through the branches of plants, and they are flexible. If a person in a dream haunted by the dead, then we can take rowan branch (Rowan has guardian properties and drives away the dead). Branch should be cut to the growing moon, it is better not thick (whatever thickness 3 in (7.5 cm) bend already hard, especially in a small circle). Edge branches need to be split. I do it with the same shears that cut branches. It is possible use a knife, but it’s uncomfortable. We need to make circle of the branches and close the edges overlap.

Bend the branch should be very slow. I initially did not have enough patience, hurry, eventually branches cracked, and all had to start all over again. After receiving the circle join edges of the branches, fix stationery clip or tie tightly with a thread. Leave blank to dry. After few days branch dries completely and takes shape. Clips can be removed already round hoop carefully remove and fix thread, tie tightly the abutment.

How to:

Dreamcatcher need to weave in the same breath, without being distracted by other thoughts and deeds. Otherwise, he absorbs the thoughts and emotions that are experienced creator. So you should prepare: wash, take off daily negative, think about the good, think of the person for whom you make Dreamcatcher.

While making this Dreamcatcher we used: willow hoop, pheasant feathers and black marabou feathers, wooden beads, stones: jasper, rose quartz, labradorite, 100% wool yarn, cotton thread, scissors, adhesive.

Getting Started.

1. First entwine wrap using thread or cord. While entwine, wish to feature owner of catcher all good: good, sweet, vivid dreams and colorful dreams, interesting worlds in dreams etc. Fix thread and make a loop to hang handmade Dreamcatcher.

2. Next, tie a thread to weave the web. I use a thin thread “Iris” or conventional sewing threads if stone beads have very thin hole. The principle of weaving webs is shown below. Traditionally made 9 or 11 joints a thread with a hoop so we are planning the distance between places of tightening loops. It is important to do regular intervals between places fixing thread and keep the structure in good tension. Along the way, you can stick beads.

3. After the first round enmeshed need to measure the length of the thread to catcher. This, unfortunately, is not to teach, it is empirically obtained. The diameter of the catcher 4.7 in (12 cm) and thread was about 3 ft 7 in (110 cm). Unwound the thread on the hook or snag it to needle (if we weave beads into the web, then needed a needle), begin the second round. Do loops, as shown in the photo – loop to tighten the knot through the middle of the segment in the previous round:

4. Thus repeated many laps in a row clockwise along the way include beads:

5. Well, now we’ve reached the center. Here you need to leave a hole size to fit the tip of the index finger.

The hole is a possibility of an emergency exit from sleep. It is possible to attach a bird’s feather or a piece of fur, or stone. Last knot, after which we cut off the thread, it is necessary fix with quick-adhesive.

6. Then we attach the feathers. To the hoop with gossamer tie a thread length of 6-8 in (15-20 cm ) at the points where the clock would be 3, 6 and 9 hours, respectively:

Strung beads on a thread for decoration. It is necessary to choose such that their inner hole was placed the tip of the feather. Feathers threading in the last beads on a string, joint fix with glue.

When all the feathers are attached, our handmade Dreamcatcher will look like this: 

Wait for a few minutes to glue has completely dry. Then hang it on the sun (symbolic pre-cleaning solar energy) for the day. After that, you can hang a Dreamcatcher at the head of the sleeper. Periodically need to re-post it to sunlight.

As a result, you get an interesting and unusual gift made by your own hands: