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At most powwows, alongside beadwork, moccasins and baskets, you will almost certainly find someone selling dreamcatchers. You will also see this traditional aboriginal craft hanging in windows, from rearview mirrors in vehicles, or even from someone's ears. They might be woven with delicate thread on a tiny hoop, or made of sinew on a large wreath of twigs.

Dreamcatchers make a nice decoration, but they also have a purpose. It is said the hole at the centre of the web allows only good dreams to filter through to a sleeping person's mind. Bad dreams, which do not know their way, become caught in the web and disappear when the sun comes up. Dreamcatchers are often hung above cradleboards to give babies a restful sleep, but they're used by people of all ages.

The origin of the dreamcatcher is not entirely clear, but it appears to come from Ojibway traditions. Christina Smith, an Algonquin-Mohawk who lives in Ottawa, says the dreamcatcher is now so widespread that people of all aboriginal backgrounds know the craft. Smith works with young people at the Odawa Native Friendship Centre, and she says it's rare to meet someone who hasn't already learned to make a dreamcatcher at some point in their life.

To make your own dreamcatcher, all the materials you need should be available at craft stores. You can even buy a kit with the materials pre-cut!

Follow these steps to create dream catchers.

What you will need:

• sinew (Yarn or strong thread could be substituted, but Smith says sinew is better because its waxy texture makes it easier to shift the knots into place)
• metal ring of any size (For a more authentic dreamcatcher, use a small, fresh branch from a willow tree, and bind the ends together to form a circle)
• suede lacing
• pony beads
• feathers

1. If you're using a metal hoop, begin by knotting one end of the suede lacing to the hoop. Leave about 10 cm of lace to make a hanging loop later.
2. Cover the entire hoop by wrapping it with the lacing. When you come around to the top again, tie off the lacing.
3. Knot the two ends of lacing together to make a loop for hanging the dreamcatcher.
4. Cut several arms-length of sinew from the spool. You want enough to make several rounds of webbing.
5. Tie one end of the sinew to the top of the hoop.
                       
6. Now you're ready to start the web of the dreamcatcher, which involves making evenly spaced half-hitch knots. To make your first half-hitch knot, loop the sinew over the hoop to the back, then bring sinew to the front again by pulling it up through the hole you've made between it and the hoop. Be sure to always keep the sinew pulled taut.
7. Continue making half-hitch knots at seven or eight evenly-spaced points on the hoop until you come around to the top of the hoop again.
8. Start the next round of webbing by making your half-hitch knots on the loops of sinew from the first round. Continue making rounds.
                       
9. Thread a bead on at any point you like.
10. When, at the end of a round, you have a small hole left in the centre of the web, tie a double knot. Cut off the leftover sinew.
11. To make feather fringes to hang off the hoop, cut a few strips of suede lacing. The length of the strips will depend on the size of your hoop, but the fringes are often longer than the hoop's width. Tie the strips of lacing to the bottom of the dreamcatcher.
12. Thread a few beads onto each piece of lacing, and tie knots to keep them in place.
13. Push the end of a feather through the beads.

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