A dreamcatcher is one of the most common amulets that was known in the culture of indigenous peoples of North America. Initially, such an amulet was used to protect children: the talisman was hung over the place where the child slept. It was believed that at night various dreams and energies float in the air. Thus, bad dreams get tangled in the web that is inside the amulet (circle), and therefore quickly disappear with the first rays of the sun. Good dreams carefully pass through the hole in the center and can “descend” to the sleeper along the feathers hanging down. Therefore, the dreamcatcher symbolizes protection, energy filtration, and sleep harmony. In this overview, we will familiarize ourselves with how to make a DIY dream catcher by following step-by-step instructions.
Main Components and Details for Work
Make your own dreamcatcher using a simple set of components:
- Metal ring, the size of which is selected at your own discretion (most often a ring with a diameter of 10 inches is used).
- Scissors.
- Glue for reliable fixation of knots in order to prevent their possible unraveling (you can use super glue or a glue gun). The main condition when choosing glue is that it should be transparent and dry quickly.
- Thread for the inner part of the ring, as well as for the lower hanging part. The color of the thread can be chosen at your own discretion.
- Several large-sized paper clips.
- Beads.
- Feathers. You can use several types of feathers: for example, fluffier white ones and striped ones with a brown tint.
- Suede lacing, which should be as dense as possible so that you can wrap the entire metal ring with it.
If you plan to place several additional decorations at the bottom, you will need various laces, shells, threads, beads, and other accessories.
Step-by-Step Instructions
When all the elements for work are prepared, you can proceed to complete the task, following the sequence of actions:
- The ring must be carefully wrapped with suede lacing. The initial end can be secured with a paper clip so that the lacing does not shift to the side each time when wrapping the rest of the metal ring.
- To fasten the two ends of the lacing, you will need to use glue/glue gun. The ends are best glued on the back side so that traces of glue are not visible on the front side. After this, you can remove the paper clip, but for some time you should hold the ends together – until the glue sets. It is recommended to use quick-drying glue, which is carefully applied on the sides and top of the ends.
- After this, one end of the rope that was used for lacing needs to be attached with a paper clip to the top – where the ends of the suede lacing were just fixed. It is important to check that the rope is securely fastened, as it will be pulled and stretched later.
- Around the ring, you need to carefully wrap the thread; the whole process can be described as: “under-over-under-over.” Moreover, it is important to wrap as tightly as possible so that nothing hangs down. The thread should be positioned slightly tighter and closer to the edge of the ring. This process is quite complex, and therefore it is often necessary to repeat the procedure several times at this stage before achieving the desired result.
- Continue wrapping the thread all the way to the center of the ring – along each straight line.
- As soon as the thread reaches the center of the ring and the middle hole is of the required size, you can make a neat loop by tying a double knot for maximum reliability. It is best to tie the knot on the back side of the future dreamcatcher. Moreover, the knot should fit tightly against the hole, as the excess part of the thread should be cut off so that nothing hangs down. Important: to ensure the knot is really well secured, you can drop a little glue on it.
- Using a small piece of suede lacing, make a “loop” at the top of the future dreamcatcher. This loop will be fixed in exactly the same place where the ends of the suede lacing used for the metal ring were previously glued.
- Now you can proceed to the pendants in the lower part of the dreamcatcher. All previously selected details need to be prepared and laid out on newspaper or on a paper plate so as not to stain the work surface with glue.
- It is necessary to measure the desired length of the lower part and double it – you will need to wrap/tie the thread around the ring to get two sides. For this, you can use suede lacing or white thread, and to add volume to the finished product, you should use fluffy feathers.
- When using feathers of different colors and types, they can be laid out in advance in order to create an original pattern on each of the threads.
- On each side of the threads, you can place one bead until they are positioned as close to the ring as possible. After this, the feather needs to be threaded through the bead, and to fix the feathers it is recommended to use glue.
- Step 11 must be repeated until you finish. Beads need to be placed at the desired distance from each other so that all elements look harmonious on the dreamcatcher.
- The same actions are repeated for all three sections of the product. After this, you need to check how well all the details are secured, and cut off excess threads (it is important to cut the thread as close to the base of the bead as possible to get a neat construction).
The dreamcatcher is ready and you can find the most suitable place in the house where it can be hung. Thanks to the variety of designs, you will be able to experiment and create your own unique dreamcatchers.