Cool crafts

Autumn
dream catcher

Go for a walk to find pine cones and leaves, then bring nature indoors with this seasonal craft.

Sweet dreams!

Dream catchers have traditionally been used by some Indigenous American people. Small willow hoops containing a woven net would be hung above someone’s bed to protect them from harm – a bit like a good luck charm. Making a loop out of wood can be tricky, so ours is a triangle!

You will need

Three sticks
Around 3-4 metres of string or wool
Fallen leaves, acorns, conkers and other natural materials

Step one

Arrange the sticks in a triangle shape. Leave a bit of overlap to make it easier to tie them together.

Step two

Use string to tie up each corner and hold the sticks in place.

Step three

Begin to weave your dream catcher by securing the end of the string at one of the corners. Then wrap the string around the outside edges about every 3cm, leaving it a little bit loose.

Step four

Once you get back to your starting spot, follow the same weaving pattern. But instead of looping the string around the outside edge, loop it around the centres of the string from the first pass.

Step five

Continue this pattern until it stops in the middle. Then tie it off and cut the string.

Step six

Decorate your dream catcher with whatever natural materials you can find on the ground in your garden, the park or the countryside. Leaves, cones, nuts and acorns are all great additions.