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2020 can be summarized as a bad dream. And now that it is over and done with, we all need good vibes to get us through 2021. Having an option for some of the best dream catchers can help us through this.
Dream catchers have been around since the early 1960s when the rise of the Pan-Indian movement was at its peak. And since the 1980s dream catchers have gone on to become common arts and crafts items that can be used as home décor or jewelry.
Dream catchers are said to be good omens that are meant to protect you. Today dream catchers have become a sensation among the “woke” millennials who have adopted them in their neckpieces, earrings, headpieces, and even bracelets. When it comes to house décor dream catchers have been incorporated in lighting fixtures, wall hangings, and even pin-ups that vary in size, shape, design, and overall style.
With so many options and variants, how do you determine, which is the best dream catcher for you? We have compiled a list of eight of the best dream catchers of 2021 to help you with your decision making.
Best Overall:Dremisland Blue Dream Catcher
If you are looking for a dream catcher that will double up as a home décor item then the Dremisland Blue Dream catcher is the right dream catcher for you. This dream catcher is handcrafted by professionals who have years-long experience in knitting.
The Dremisland Blue Dream Catcher is made of a metallic hoop, wood beads, natural feathers, cotton lace, and a vintage star. The vintage star in this dream catcher is built to add flair to this item, as well as create a cheerful and festive atmosphere in the room it is placed.
This dream catcher makes for the ideal gift for adults and kids. Can be used as wall décor in the living room, bedroom, hallway, or office.
- Handcrafted
- Made of metal, wood beads, natural features cotton lace, and a vintage star
- Comes with hooks and nails for mounting on the wall
- Brand: Dremisland
- Model: 8541857807
- Product dimension: 8 inches (width) x 25 inches (height)
- Product weight: 3.52 Ounces
- Beautiful design
- Beautiful package
- Made with cheap and poor quality material
- Actual dream catcher does not look like the pictures used to advertise
Best Value:Beinou Unicorn Dream Catcher
Dream catchers trace their roots back to the Native Americans who used them to protect infants and children against bad dreams. The Beinou Unicorn Dream catcher is the best dream catcher for kids and adults who find bright colors to be calming and soothing.
This dream catcher features a unicorn dream horn that is paired with cotton threads, handmade flowers, pearls, ribbons, and wooden beads. This seems like a lot, but when it comes to dreaming catchers, you need something that emits good vibes all through.
The Beinou Unicorn Dream catcher is a lightweight dream catcher that is ideal for wall hanging. This makes it perfect for the nursery or playroom. This dream catcher makes for an ideal birthday present or baby shower gift.
- Comes in a variety of colors
- Comes with a number of DIY items
- Bright colors
- Brand: Beinou
- Model: JI-DA15301
- Product dimension: 7.5 inches (width) x 23 inches (height)
- Product weight: 3.2 Ounces
- Pretty colors
- Beautiful design
- Requires touch-ups to maintain shape and design after unboxing
- The material feels cheap and tacky
Best Pick:AerWo Boho Dream Catcher
Sometimes you have to go big or go home. The AerWo Boho Dream Catcher is a good example of this. This dream catcher is bigger compared to other dream catchers in this list. It is, however, lightweight and sturdy.
The AerWo Boho Dream catcher is easy to mount on walls or hang from ceilings. It features handmade flowers, delicate white lace ribbons, white clipped glitter feathers, and beige tassels. All these features are removable making this an ideal DIY dream catcher that can be modified to cater to your wants and needs.
This Dream catcher is built to suit most if not all of your spaces. From the kid’s nursery to their playroom, your living room, bedroom, office, even gym. This makes it an amazing birthday, anniversary, or wedding gift.
- Comes with a set of DIY items
- Boho design theme
- Comes with hooks and nails for hanging
- Handcrafted
- Brand: AerWo
- Model: N/A
- Product dimension: 7.8 inches (width) x 20 inches (length)
- Product weight: 3.6 Ounces
- Can be used as a party decor
- Comes assembled
- Beautiful design
- Beautiful package
- Material feels cheap
- Smaller than advertised
Dream Catcher ~ Handmade Traditional Feather Wall Hanging Home Decoration
If you are looking for a gift for your friend, partner, sibling, parent, or child the Dream Catcher ~ Handmade Traditional Feather Wall Hanging Dream Catcher is a good option to throw into your choice hat.
This dream catcher makes for the perfect wall hanging piece. It is made using lightweight metal that is paired with ethically handmade flowers, the web is made with handwoven traditional techniques using natural materials that include natural feathers, wooden beads, and silk.
This dream catcher makes for an amazing décor piece because of its unique design and overall style. You can hang it in any room or space that you feel needs a little sprucing up.
- Hand-made
- Beautiful design
- Uses silk for web material
- Brand: Dremisland
- Model: DR-001-
- Product dimension: 5.1 inches (width) x 19.6 inches (length)
- Product weight: 0.634 Ounces
- Makes for a good gift
- Beautiful design
- Makes for a good décor piece
- The material feels cheap and tacky
- There is a lack of attention to detail in the design and build
Artilady Macrame Dream Catcher
Dream catchers are used to protecting against bad dreams and nightmares. They can, however, be used to protect against bad décor and empty walls.
So, if you are looking to spruce up your house by adding a little flare to those blank empty walls then you might want to consider a dream catcher, to be specific an Artilady Macrame Dream Catcher. This dream catcher boasts of an authentic Bohemian design and style.
It is made of an 8-inch circle that is paired with cotton webbings and finished off with amazing tassels at the bottom. This beautifully crafted dream catcher makes for an ideal décor piece in any room or space. This dream catcher comes to you in a cute package.
- Has tassels at the bottom
- Bohemian design
- Hand-made
- Brand: Artilady
- Model: N/A
- Product dimension: 8 inches (width) x 22 inches (length)
- Product weight: 2.24 Ounces
- Comes in an attractive gift bag
- Sturdy and made to last
- Made with quality material
- Colors are not as shown in the pictures
OUTUXED Dream Catcher
If you are looking for a high-quality dream catcher that guarantees you good vibes all through, then you are in luck because Outuxed has the right dream catcher for you – the OUTUXED Dream Catcher. The OUTUXED Dream Catcher is a rainbow tree of the life dream catcher that comes wrapped in a cute gift package.
It is made of high-quality ABS polished beads, natural feathers that are sterilized at high temperatures, and high-quality metallic rings. This dream catcher makes for the perfect wall decoration, party decoration, or just as a simple dream catcher.
- Made using ABS polished beads
- It has feathers attached to its hoop
- Can be used as a party accessory
- Brand: Outuxed
- Model: N/A
- Product dimension: 6 inches (width) x 19 inches (length)
- Product weight: 2.08 Ounces
- Made with high-quality material
- Beautiful design
- Good attention to detail
- Advertised and sold as a rainbow tree but comes only in brown
Urdeoms Dream Catcher White Wall Hanging Decoration with Obsidian Pendant
Dream catchers have for the longest time been made using willow and sinew. However, the modern twist to them has gone on to create long-lasting sturdy dream catchers. The Urdeoms Dream Catcher White Wall Hanging Decoration with an Obsidian pendant makes for an amazingly beautiful house or office décor. It features white feathers that are embellished with a beautiful obsidian pendant.
Beautifully polished ABS beads, natural feathers that are ethically harvested and properly sterilized without compromising on the quality of the materials. The Urdeoms Dream Catcher White Wall Hanging Decoration with an Obsidian pendant makes for an amazing party accessory, wedding décor, home décor, and nursery décor.
- ABS beads
- Natural feathers
- Obsidian amulet
- Brand: Urdeoms
- Model: N/A
- Product dimension: 6 inches (width) x 17.7 inches (length))
- Product weight: 2.36 Ounces
- Sturdy build
- Beautiful style and design pattern
- The material feels cheap and tacky
- Poor craftsmanship
Nice Dream LED Dream Catcher (Burgundy)
Are you looking for a peaceful night’s sleep then you should consider getting a dream catcher? The Nice Dream LED Dream Catcher (Burgundy) is a perfect choice for a dream catcher. The design and structure of this dream catcher ensure that your good dreams flow to you effortlessly through the feathers and tassels.
The Nice Dream LED Dream Catcher (Burgundy) is a handcrafted dream catcher that is made of a metal hoop, high-quality yarn is used to make the web, beads, feathers, tassels, and an alloy chain. This dream catcher is made in an ethical manner that does not compromise the build quality of the dream catcher.
This dream catcher has a modern twist to it. It is fitted with LED fairy lights that are powered with CR2032 batteries that can power the fairy lights for anywhere between 24 hours and 48 hours.
- Natural feathers
- Fairy LED lights
- Comes with two CR2032 batteries
- Brand: Nice Dream
- Model: N/A
- Product dimension: 5.9 inches (width) x 19 inches (length)
- Product weight: 2.9 Ounces
- Beautiful design
- Beautiful color
- Sturdy
- Has fairy lights
- Materials used to feel cheap
Nice Dream LED Dream Catcher (Pink)
Good dreams go hand in hand with beauty, and the Nice Dream LED Dream Catcher (Pink) is a perfect representation of this. This dream catcher features a handmade metal hoop, high-quality yarn, and a metal alloy are used to make the web. This dream catcher also comes with feather detailing on the bottom that is the path traveled by your good dreams from the center to you.
Like other dream catchers from Nice Dream, the Nice Dream LED dream catcher (Pink) comes with copper wire LED fairy lights that are powered by CR2032 batteries that can last up to 72 hours if left on continuously.
This dream catcher makes for an amazing gift that can double up as home décor.
- Copper wire LED fairy lights
- Comes with two CR2032 batteries
- Handcrafted
- Brand: Nice Dream
- Model: N/A
- Product dimension: 5.9 inches (width) x 19 inches (length)
- Product weight: 2.9 Ounces
- Beautiful design
- Has LED fairy lights
- Cheap and tacky materials are used to make this dream catcher
- Poor craftsmanship
- Smaller than advertised
Dremisland Double Circle White Feather Dream Catcher with Mobile LED Fairy Lights
LED fairy lights are quickly making their way into the dream catcher world. While this twist has nothing to do with the effectiveness of a dream catcher, it sure does add to the dream catcher’s beauty.
The Dremisland Double Circle White Feather Dream Catcher with mobile LED fairy lights are made of a metal hoop, high quality natural white feathers that are ethically harvested, beads, and STAR LED fairy lights.
Unlike its competitors, the Dremisland Double Circle White Feather Dream Catcher with mobile LED fairy lights does not come with batteries, you have to buy those separately.
- Mobile LED fairy lights
- Handcrafted
- White feather detailing.
- Brand: Dremisland
- Model: 8541251673
- Product dimension: 2.75 inches (width) x 31.5 inches (length)
- Product weight: 7.4 Ounces
- Has mobile LED fairy lights
- Beautiful design
- Batteries come separately
What is a Dream Catcher?
History, Origin, Meaning & Indian Symbolism
If you are to look up the meaning of “dream catcher” on the internet, you will get a layman’s description of an item that has a tiny hoop that contains horsehair mesh. However, there is more to this than a loop with horsehair.
If you were to take time and look past the beautiful and colorful design of the dream catcher then you will realize that there is more to it. It is believed that dream catchers were first made by Native Americans. The original dream catches were handmade willow hoops woven into a web or sometimes a net.
Different tribes in the Native American community used different items to decorate their dream catchers, these include feathers and beads. Dream catchers were traditionally suspended on the cradles of children and infants to ward off any bad spirits.
Today, most dream catcher designs are traced back to the Ojibwe (Puckered Moccasin People). It is believed that the Ojibwe are the pioneers of dream catchers and that they passed it onto the other tribes through trade, intermarriages, or sometimes both.
The 1960s all through to the 1970s marked the rise of the Pan-Indian movement during which dream catchers became widely adopted by Native Americans. Dream catchers are considered to be a symbol of oneness among numerous indigenous cultures and regions.
A dream catcher is considered part of the Native American culture and identity.
Over the years, there have been many allegations of cultural misappropriations by non-Native Americans who seem to misuse dream catchers.
History & Origin of the Dream Catcher
Many people know that dream catchers trace back their roots to the Native American community, but how far back does it go? Who started it all and why?
Dream catchers are believed to have originated from the Spider Woman – Asibaikaashi. Legend has it that Asibaikaashi, an old woman saw a spider near her sleeping area, she did not chase it away or kill it instead she watched it for days as it spun its web. One day her grandson saw the spider and tried to kill it, however, Asibaikaashi stopped him but did not give him a reason why.
When the young boy left, the spider who was spinning his web turned to Asibaikaashi, thanked her for saving his life, and gave her a gift. The gift was the skill to spin a web. However, this was not any ordinary web, it was a web that would snare and ward off any bad dreams.
Asibaikaashi was the Ojibwe custodian of infants and adults, and when the community started spreading across the land she needed to find a way to keep her community safe. It is believed that she passed on the skills to weave magical webs using willow hoops and sinew, to protect infants. For the children and adults charms were made to protect them.
This is one of the many stories that seek to explain the origin of dream catchers and their significance, other tales include the legends of Lakota and so many more. While different Native American tribes have their own origin story, one thing they all seem to agree on is that dream catchers are used to protect.
Dream Catcher Meaning
Dream catchers are used as a protective talisman, to protect people from bad dreams. They do this by trapping and warding off bad dreams and letting only the good dreams pass through.
Standard dream catchers are made up of a hoop and a web. The hoop is round and it is used to represent the shape of the earth. The web is used to represent the gateway for dreams, good dreams are allowed to go through while bad dreams are absorbed to protect the sleeping infant or adult.
Symbolism
Over the years dream catchers have become a popular phenomenon across the world, even in Non-Native American communities. This has seen the evolution of the standard traditional Ojibwe dream catchers. These modernized dream catchers still bear resemblance to the traditional dream catchers.
However, the modern twist on the design, build, and purpose of dream catchers has created a wide gap between the traditional dream catcher and the modern. This according to some Native Americans is culturally inappropriate, a violation, and a mockery of their culture, tradition, and beliefs that are related to dreaming catchers.
Getting your hands on a traditional authentic dream catcher is not easy. Seeing that the market is flooded with “modernized” versions that are made of cheap and tacky materials. Today, dream catchers are thought of and considered to be more American, than Native American.
Facts about dream catcher
The shape of a dream catcher has a meaning
The shape of a dream catcher has a meaning behind it. The circular hood is used to represent the Earth and the web is used to represent the filter or doorway for your dreams. The center, which is often a hole, is where your good dreams pass through to come to you.
Each point where the string is tied on the hoop has a meaning. The number of points where the string is tied to the hoop also has meaning. For example, a dream catcher with eight points is a symbol of the spider that created the first dream catcher, while one with six points is a symbol of courage.
Sunlight is used cleanses them
It is believed that sunlight is used to cleanse your dream catcher of any bad dreams that it absorbed when it was protecting you. Native Americans hung their dream catchers at a point where sunlight could hit them so as to kill off all the bad dreams.
Detail is key
Every detail on a dream catcher is important. From the hoop to the web and even the accessories added to it. Feathers were for a long time used to add detail to the dream catcher. They were added to the bottom of the hoop to help with the flow of good dreams from the center of the hoop to you.
Beads were also used. They were used to represent the spider that started it all and also as charms that prevent your dreams from being trapped or tangled up in the web.
They only catch bad dreams
Dream catchers can only protect you from bad dreams. They cannot be used to protect you against anything else.
They were never built to last forever
Traditional dream catchers were made of willow and sinew, which would dry up over time. This was done to symbolize to the children and infants that nothing was ever meant to last forever. This also fostered the belief that things come and go and that they should appreciate everything.
They are not American
Dream catchers are not an American tradition rather a Native American tradition. According to the history of dream catchers, they were first made by Asibaikaashi, custodian of the Ojibwe tribe.
FAQs
Q: What is the meaning behind Dream Catchers? A: Dream catchers are used as a protective talisman, to protect people from bad dreams. They do this by trapping and warding off bad dreams and letting only the good dreams pass through. Q: Do dreamcatchers really work? A: The question of whether or not dream catchers work is best answered with, it depends on your beliefs. However, if you are to go with what they stand for and represent then yes, dream catchers work. Q: Are dream catchers sacred? A: Yes, dream catchers are sacred. Just like any other borrowed tradition, dream catchers were and still are used by Native Americans for protection and thus are considered sacred. Used for protection, dream catchers were used by Asibaikaashi, the custodian of infants and people to protect her tribe, Ojibwe when they spread across the land. Q: Is having a dream catcher inappropriate for Non-Native Americans? A: No, it is not as long as you are not using it for mockery or imitation of the Native American community.Conclusion
Modern dream catchers are worlds apart from original traditional dream catchers. Today, dream catchers are made to be huge, colorful, and long-lasting. These are elements that in no way represent what dream catchers are.
However, this is not mean that modern dream catchers cannot get the job done. They can if they are used for the intended purpose to catch dreams and not as a decoration or as a way to look “woke”. Remember before you buy a dream catcher for your home décor or as a gift, dream catchers are a borrowed tradition that we should all respect. You also have the option of making your own personally handcrafted dream catcher.
