Making a Dream Catcher

Last Updated on October 28, 2023 by Avia

Making a Dream Catcher and Getting Creative in Challenging Times

The commonly held belief about making a dream catcher is a method to ward of bad dreams. In truth, dream catchers have multi-faceting meanings. Their purposes, history, and the process of making a dream catcher are far more intricate than just shooing away unwanted dreams. In fact, the physical act of making dream catchers can be therapeutic, inspire creativity, and even be a welcomed distraction. I had an experience with this when I was a kid. The process of making one turned out to be fun, distracting, and it was a grand way to get my mind off of a crummy situation.

Avia’s Experience with Making a Dream Catcher in Challenging Times

When I was a kid I went to summer camp. Yes, I realize our enforced social distancing is far from good-times-summer-camp.

However, one time at camp we all got stuck in the common room while the cabins were being fumigated for bed bugs (oh yea, fun times!).

A camp counselor, Gwen, had the brilliant idea of making good use of our quarantined time.

She showed all us kids how to make dream catchers!

She had willow branches, thread, and feathers at the ready and we commenced to making these neat little crafts.

Gwen realized (as kids) we were all freaked out by the whole bed bug thing. She also knew we were all pretty much sugar-craving-monsters who needed to stay busy. It was a phenomenal way to get creative, get mindfully present, and also a project that follows the history of a noble culture.

Meaning of the Dream Catcher

Outside of Gwen’s foresight and ingenuity, what struck me about this crafting session was how it was a way to focus and distract from the challenging times in our campsite.

What also really seized me by my snarglies is the meaning behind the dream catcher.

Most of you might know it is a Native American artifact of protection. It encourages safety, security and cleansing of bad juju.

Depending upon which tribal history you consult, making a dream catcher can bring about several powerful shifts in energy, like…

Boogie Man Be Gone: Thwarting bad dreams, evil spirits, thoughts of terror. As many Native traditions state, the dream catcher is hung over the bed (or cradle, mostly for children to sleep peacefully through the night). The idea is bad energy is caught in the webs of the dream catcher and then passed flung from the physical into the ‘other-realms’ by the feathers. Think of a spiritual electric fan set on reverse…sucking out the bad stuff and pushing it out into the ethers.

Catching Good Dreams. Some accounts in Native wisdom consider the dream catcher as a kind of gauntlet where only the good remains, and all the bad has no access. Rather than the bad thoughts being caught, the web of the catcher creates a force-field of positive vibes that linger upon the sleeping.

Everything is Connected: Life is Like a Web. Perhaps this is the most profound perspective of the dream catcher. At the end of the day, we are all connected. And perhaps it takes challenging times to put us all in the same boat to realize this. We all share the common denominator of problems, and sometimes when we all get together to create something beautiful is the best way to move through tough times.

As Chief Seattle quoted:

“Humankind has not woven the web of life . We are but one thread within it. Whatever we do to the web , we do to ourselves. All things are bound together.”
Chief Seattle

Tips to Making a Dream Catcher

You don’t have to be DaVinci to create or craft a dream catcher. All you need is the sincere desire and a few materials you can find laying around. What’s most important is to set intentions. As you are crafting a catcher, stay present and keep focused on the purpose of the final product. Making dream catchers is about binding, connecting, and protecting. Keep these intentions in mind as your making your dream catchers:

Remember the connections in life and your connection to the universe. Every thread in the hoop represents a bond, friendship, family member, partnership, etc.

Think about what is sacred. Infuse your dream catcher with the love for yourself or whomever you are making it for. This enhances the protective power.

Stay present in the good things. Stay focused on the good things that already exist in your life as you are piecing together your dream catcher.