How to Make a Dream Catcher – Craft Tutorial
The Dream catcher now comes in all sizes and a great variety of designs. Depending on the artist making them and how they were taught. These instructions are the most basic of design and materials. We leave it up to you to choose how you want to finish the decoration of your Dream Catcher.
How to Make a Dream Catcher
Photo A shows it finished based on our instructions here.
Many make the hoop out of bent willow which in the northern regions needs to be collected and bent in the spring. These instructions show the alternative of making the Dream Catcher with a metal hoop and wrapping it with a buckskin thong. We are writing for right-handers so left-handers may want to reverse directions when weaving.
Start by smearing a light coat of tacky glue at the start of your thong wrapping and around the hoop. Let it dry until tacky. Begin wrapping as in Figure 1 being careful the thong is tightly wrapped but not overlapped as to make ridges.
Complete all the way around the hoop and then slightly overlap the starting piece of thong. Finish the wrapping with a single half hitch as shown. Now cut off the remainder of the thong. Finish the wrapping with a single half hitch not as shown in Figure 2 and 3.
Do not cut the thong yet. As in Figure 4 and 5, form a hanging loop with the end of the thong then tie around the loop with another half hitch as shown. Now cut off the remainder of the thong.
You are now ready to start the web. Completed it looks like Photo A. For a three inch diameter hoop cut a 2 yard piece of simulated fine sinew.
Start the web by tying a knot at the top of the hoop next to the hanging loop. The entire first row is loosely woven as shown in Figure 6. When using a 3 inch hoop hitch tie the web using only 8 equally spaced connections around the hoop about 1 inch apart. Tie the hitch the same at each intersection of the thread or the hoop as you proceed and as shown in Figure 7. After the 8th hitch on the hoop the next hitch is made at the midpoint of the first loop in the first row as shown in Figure 8.
As you tie these hitches you begin to pull each stitch in the web up snugly but not tight. You continue around the web tying a hitch and pulling tighter on each row until you are down to a small center hole in your web.
At the point you want to quit your web tie a double half hitch knot over the middle of the next section in the web and pull tightly.
On this basic Dream Catcher shown in Figure 9, people are adding a variety of decorations. The original design used a small feather hanging from the bottom of the hoop or from the center of the web. A bead was included in the weave of the web somewhere halfway or close to the center.
A variety of looks can be achieved by varying the number of points you attach the web to the hoop, and the length of the first row of loops in the web. Some people have specific reasons for certain numbers of points in the web. Dream Catchers can be made of other materials such as our Rattan hoop in Photo B.
Our experience is that the beauty of the Dream Catcher comes from its original uncluttered form and notion that we exist in the presence of two worlds, a physical one and a spiritual one.
Learn to make more Native American Crafts in our Craft Tutorials.
Copyright: 2005 by Loren Woerpel, Noc Bay Publishing, Inc.
Featured photo by Kate Ter Haar
TOPICS: Blog, Craft Tutorials, Featured
Related Posts
5 Responses to “How to Make a Dream Catcher – Craft Tutorial”
Leave a Comment
Pow Wow Calendar Search
Quick Links
- Contest Results
- News
- Native American Jobs
- Native American Colleges and Universities
- Native American Tribes
- Resources for Scouts
- Resources for Students and Teachers
- Resources for 1st Pow Wow Visitors
- Drum Groups
- Mcs
- Arena Directors
New Threads
Dance Styles
Straight Dancing
The Straight Dance from Oklahoma Native American Tribes is a formal, tailored, prestigious form of southern dance clothes. The overall effect is of reassuring solidity, with everything closely matched and …
Crafts
How To Make a Beaded Rosette Medallion – Craft Tutorials
This project will help you learn to do applique rosettes on a small project. Beaded medallion necklaces have been popular for both men and women dancers for many generations. These …
AMERICAN INDIAN PHOTO GALLERIES
View thousands of photos of dancing, singing, crafts and more. Share your photos online!




























My wife, who passed to the spirit world a year and half ago, taught dream catcher making at our house to several in a Native group we belong to. I, unfortunately, was busy supporting the guests and not paying attention to the instruction as I should have. Will try again with the instructions. Well never match her matter of fact talk; teach; make but maybe I can make one that isn’t too awful.
Wawanon Thank You
I think whatever you make will be great!! She would be very happy to see your efforts
Don’t say that, I’m sure you will make something great
Thank you so much for this site! I have been searching for directions to make dream catchers and couldnt find any I could follow. This one I can actually follow! Again, many thanks, Kathy
Thank you for helping me with the Dream catcher.