Beautiful DIY Dream Catchers to Keep Your Dreams Sweet This Summer
Updated on July 11, 2018
Where we come from, dream catchers are one of the most popular crafts to make all year round. Because there are so many diverse Native cultures in the area, there are countless designs and interpretations of the project all over the area, sold in artisan craft stores and handmade by locals from across the land. In the summer, however, they’re particularly common to make because sunshine and warm nights are a great excuse to use bright colours in your DIY projects and hang things by the window where they’ll sway lightly in the warm breeze. Whichever kind you choose to make, or whichever authentic design you decide to base your DIY dream catcher off of, there’s one thing they’ll all have in common: the oft believed ability to keep your dreams safe and sweet! Just because yours might be made from yarn or crafted together by your children doesn’t mean they won’t have the power to ward off unpleasant nightmares like the kinds you’ve seen created by elders from the local area. As long as they’re made with respect, reverence, and a little bit of creativity, dream catchers are fantastic for anyone with the patience to make them!
Just in case you’re as enamoured with the concept of not just hanging dream catchers in your home but also with actually making them with your own two hands, here are 15 of the funnest and most stunning dream catcher designs, ideas, and tutorials we’ve encountered so far in our search for the perfect one to make this summer.
1. Dream catchers with felt heart hangers
If you’re going to make dream catchers with your kids this summer, would you prefer to make the designs as fun as you possibly can, with lots of different colours, textures, and features in your design? In that case, we’d absolutely suggest taking a look at how Art Bar made these awesome DIY catchers using yarn, beads, paper, and felt! To us, the funnest part of this design is inarguably the lovely felt hearts, which have been very simply hand stitched to be a little bit plush. They’ll keep your kids’ dreams sweet and make them feel loved!
2. Golden leaf trinket and ribbons dream catcher
Now, no matter how stunning this hanging ribbon ideas looks, we know that it’s an idea that has been done many times. Even so, we still can’t get enough of lovely ribbon, lace, and feather combinations that hang from the bottom of many dream catchers. In this particular design, however, that’s not actually what caught our eye the most! We’re actually completely obsessed with the way Hey Let’s Make Stuff incorporated a stunning chrome gold leaf shaped trinket in the centre of their dream catcher’s web as though it’s suspended or floating.
3. Feather, pom pom, and tassel dream catchers
Did we catch your attention quite well with the first dream catcher design we showed you, which outlined how to make one with a range of adorable trinkets hanging down, but you’ve actually been scrolling through our list hoping to find a design that’s similar but a little more simplified so that your kids will have a simple time making it with you? In that case, we definitely think you should take a look at how Petite Party Studio created this super fun dream catcher design using feathers, pom poms, and yarn tassels.
4. Suede wrapped hoop and embroidery floss dream catcher
Are you actually hoping to find a dream catcher design that, while still very simple and suitable for beginners, looks a little less “craft” and a little more authentic, like the real cultural pieces you see in the artisan stores in your town? In that case, we have a feeling you might actually prefer to make one like this suede wrapped version featured on Kaleyann! We love the way they used embroidery floss to created the webing and hanging embellishments because it means you get full control of what colours you use there.
5. Paper plate and yarn dream catcher
Perhaps your children are actually still very young and, even though they’re avid crafters who are absolutely ready and raring to go when it comes to making dream catchers, you think they’ll still need an idea that’s even a little bit easier than what you’ve seen so far? In that case, here’s another simple, family friendly design for your consideration! Check out how Jane Can made a learner’s catcher using a paper plate with the middle cut out, some simple yarn and crafting feathers, and plastic beads.
6. Ribbon and crocheted lace dream catcher
Perhaps you’ve already got your heart set on a ribbon wrapped style of dream catcher frame with matching or contrasting ribbons or beads that hang down, but you can’ help but feel like the webbing on the inside could be more impressive, just to really amp the look of the whole piece up? Then we think perhaps we’ve found just the tutorial for you! For those of you who are also avid yarn crafters on top of everything else, Fibre Share suggests crocheting a simple, lovely lace pattern akin to a doily and stitching it into the centre of your hoop.
7. Moon inspired yarn wrapped dream catcher
Just because the circular dream catchers with a web across the entire centre are the kind you’ll most commonly see in both stores and homemade designs doesn’t mean they’re the only kind you can make! In fact, one of our favourite dream catchers we ever created was done by following this absolutely stunning moon-shaped dream catcher tutorial outlined step by step on Map Tote! They show you how to use two hoops of different sizes to create a lovely crescent moon shape that also features a little bit of embroidery knotting in the centre of the smaller hoop, just like the more traditional style. Embellish the edges with natural trinkets like acorns and sticks as you please.
8. Miniature dream catcher pendant
Do you actually love the aesthetic and overall style of dream catchers so much that you wish you could take yours with you at all times rather than just leaving it at home to hang in your window? Well, thanks to this tutorial features on iCreative Ideas, you actually can! They guide you step by step through the process of making a miniature dream catcher that’s the perfect size for being transformed into a necklace pendant.
9. Horseshoe dream catchers
It had actually never occurred to us to include horseshoes or horseshoe shapes in our dream catcher designs until we saw this photo featured on North 40 but the moment we’d discovered this possibility, it was all we could think about! We can’t get over how unique and country inspired the idea of either using the horseshoe as a the main frame and weaving the inside web between the two sides or actually weaving the horseshoe into the web itself inside a hoop is. Either way, the finished product is incredibly unique and beautiful.
10. Rainbow peacock feather dream catchers
Have you always been the kind of person who, even when the thing you admire and can’t wait to make is something older and more traditional in style, prefers to add your own colourful twist that’s full of personality? In that case, we have a feeling you’re going to just completely love the way DIY Projects created a rainbow version of a dream catcher using brightly coloured ribbons and big, impressive looking peacock feathers.
11. Fall flowers dream catcher
Have you actually already started crafting things that you’d like to hang in your home once the fall months come because you always prefer to stay a season ahead when it comes to your handmade home decor? In that case, we have a feeling you might prefer a dream catcher aesthetic that’s a little more autumn inspired in its embellishments and colour scheme that some of the designs we’ve shown you so far. Take a look at how DIY Showoff created the right aesthetic using ribbons in shades of orange and brown, as well as autumn flowers and crisp leaves.
12. Bead and feather dream catcher
No matter how beautifully impressive some of the dream catcher designs we’ve shown you so far are, do you still think you might prefer to make one in a style that’s a little simpler and slightly more minimalist than the ones you’ve already scrolled by on our list? In that case, we’d absolutely suggest taking a look at the way Earl Grey Creative used natural cream string, neutral beads, and speckled feathers to create a catcher with a simple beauty.
13. Dip dyed yarn and wooden bead dream catchers
Have the ideas that appealed the most to you so far on our list been the ones that are a little bit more of a unique take on the traditional style but you’re still not entirely convinced that the designs we’ve shown you are the ones to fully capture your attention? In that case, we think you might be the perfect person to give these dip dyed yarn and wooden bead catchers, which aesthetically fall somewhere between Boho chic and neatly modern, a try! Get the full instructions for making a version of your own on SSWW.
14. DIY feathered half moon dream catcher
Did we actually catch your attention so well with the half moon shaped dream catcher we showed you before that you haven’t stopped thinking about it since but you still can’t help wondering whether there’s a way to do it that’s a little more colourful and exciting looking than the rustic looking, neutrally coloured design we showed you above? Then Livemaster is here to save the day! They show you how to make a bright purple version with a matching purple webbing filling the moon using feathers, ribbons, beads, and embroidery floss.
15. Seashell dream catcher
If you’re going to go to the trouble of making yourself a handmade dream catcher this summer, would you prefer to make one that really harnesses a specifically summer aesthetic? In that case, we have a feeling this stunning seashell dream catcher design outlined step by step on Our Boathouse might be a little more up your alley! We love the way they’ve woven and strung seashells of different shapes and colours into the places you’d normally expect to see things like feathers in more traditional designs.
Have you made other kinds and styles of stunning dream catchers before that you were more than happy with but that you don’t see on our list? Tell us all about how you created them or link us to photos of what you made in the comments section!