Mikanakawa Native American Village - Circle Ten Council

NATIVE AMERICAN CRAFTSDream CatcherBy E. Barrie KavaschOne of the first gifts given to a newborn American Indian baby was a tiny dream catcher to hangabove or from the cradleboard. Babies and children sleep much more than adults and so mighthave more dreams. It was very important to bless those dreams with love and a beautiful dreamcatcher to capture all bad dreams.Cree and Ojibway (Chippewa/Anishinabe) artists made dream catchers out of bent ash splithoops or hickory splint hoops. The webs were woven out of thin strips of wet rawhide, sinew,hemp, horsehair or yarn. They looked like fine spider webs and would sometimes contain a beador bundle, just like a real spider web might contain a fly or some other object.Cheyenne, Navajo, Sioux and Cherokee dream catchers often had a piece of turquoise, a glassbead, a shell, or perhaps a feather in the web as well as some sweet grass for good luck andspecial blessings. Some dream catchers were woven on a circle of grapevine or a red dogwood,willow, crab apple or plum branch. Some artists wrapped the hoop with soft buckskin or fur orattached lone buckskin ties tipped with beads and feathers to catch the breeze and guide gooddreams through the dreamer.Legends say that bad dreams have rough edges and get stuck in the web of the dream catcher;good dreams are smooth and can easily slip through the web. First light of morning destroys thebad dreams, leaving the dream catcher clean. You can make a dream catcher for yourself or togive to someone else.You need:30” long grapevine, dogwood or willow branch3-4 yards of artificial sinew, yarn or cotton threadBeeswaxSmall beads, shells, or pieces of bone with holes1-2’ long buckskin tie (optional)Small feathers (optional)Directions:1. Curve and intertwine your grapevine or branch into a hoop (circle) 8” or less in diameter.Wrap and tie sinew near the center where the ends of the branch meet and knot itsecurely. Wax the sinew by pulling it through the beeswax.2. Going clockwise around the hoop and keeping the sinew taut, pass the sinew over thehoop rim. Pull the sinew out to the left, over and across as you advance to the right,overlapping every inch over the hoop. Continue all around the circle (about 12 loops).3. Continue in this manner and direction making netlike loops. The holes will get smaller asyou weave toward the center of the circle. Stop to rewax your sinew and add a bead orshell in the second and third round. Keep your web taut, tightening toward the center.4. Fasten the sinew with two small overhand knots at the center. Add a final bead or stringseveral beads close to the center. Knot the sinew and cut off any excess.5. If you want, tie a thin buckskin cord or strip on the bottom to hang free. Tie a bead andfeather to the end of it if you like. Use your remaining sinew to tie a loop at the top sothat you can hang the dream catcher.