Wolf Dreamcatcher

A wolf dreamcatcher is the smallest group in our decor range and the one with the most meaning attached to it. These are hanging pieces rather than furniture, closer to a keepsake than to decoration, and they are bought as often for what they represent as for how they look.

It is worth knowing where the object comes from, because that context is most of why people want one.

What a wolf dreamcatcher represents

The dreamcatcher originates with the Ojibwe people of North America, later spreading among other Native American nations. The traditional form is a woven web within a hoop, hung above a sleeping place, understood to catch bad dreams in the web while good ones pass through the centre and travel down the feathers to the sleeper.

The wolf enters the picture separately. Across many of the same cultures the wolf carries associations with loyalty, family and guidance, which is why the two motifs pair so naturally in the pieces here.

These are decorative objects made in that tradition's visual style rather than ceremonial items, and we would rather say so plainly. If the symbolism is what draws you, it is worth knowing the origin rather than treating it as a generic pattern, and it makes the object more interesting rather than less.

Where to hang one

Traditionally, above the head of a bed, which remains the most common placement and the one that makes sense of the object.

Practically, the piece needs to hang free. A dreamcatcher pressed flat against a wall loses the depth of the web and the movement of the feathers, both of which are the point. A few centimetres of clearance, or a position where it can turn slightly in moving air, shows it far better.

Windows are the second traditional spot, where light passes through the web and the piece moves with any draught. This is where they look best in daylight, though it also exposes them to fading over years.

Beyond the bedroom, these work well in a hallway, on the back of a door, or hung from a shelf edge. Some people hang smaller ones from a rear view mirror, which is worth checking against local rules on obstructing a driver's view before doing.

The five designs here

This is a deliberately small selection and each piece takes a different approach to combining the two motifs.

The Wolf Head Dream Catcher places the animal at the centre of the web, which is the most direct interpretation and the one that reads most clearly from a distance.

The Dream Catcher White Wolf and the Dream Catcher Grey Wolf differ mainly in palette, and the choice between them is really a choice about the room. White suits a light bedroom and reads softer. Grey holds up better against a darker wall and shows less dust over time.

The Indian Wolf Dream Catcher carries the most traditional beadwork and feather arrangement of the group.

The Dream Catcher Howling Wolf uses the silhouette against the hoop rather than filling the web, which gives the cleanest and most graphic result of the five.

Buying one as a gift

These make unusually good gifts, and for a specific reason: they carry meaning without carrying assumptions. A dreamcatcher given to somebody says something warm without being romantic, personal without being intimate, which is a narrow and useful register.

They also need no sizing, no compatibility and no knowledge of the recipient's home, since a hanging piece finds a place in almost any room.

Two things worth considering when choosing. Palette matters more than design, because the piece has to live against whatever wall the recipient hangs it on, and the grey and white options suit different rooms. And if the gift is for somebody who will hang it above a bed, the larger and more traditional pieces suit that placement better than the graphic silhouette designs.

For a housewarming in particular this works better than most decor, since it does not require matching anything already in the house.

Caring for something woven and feathered

These are the most delicate items we sell and they need a light touch.

Dust rather than clean. A hairdryer on a cool low setting, held at a distance, lifts dust from a web and from feathers without touching either. A cloth catches in the threads and a damp one marks them.

Keep them out of direct sunlight where you can. Feathers and dyed threads fade faster than printed textiles do, and a piece hung in a south-facing window will lose colour noticeably within a couple of years.

Avoid humidity. A bathroom is the one room in a house where these do not belong, since sustained damp makes feathers droop and can mark natural fibres permanently.

If feathers become bent in transit, holding them briefly in the steam from a kettle and then letting them dry usually restores the shape.

Pieces that suit the same corner

A dreamcatcher hangs above or beside a bed, which puts it in the same part of a room as several other things we make. Our wolf pillow case collection covers cushion covers that pick up the same palette on the bed below.

The dreamcatcher motif appears elsewhere in our range too. Our wolf wall stickers collection includes designs built around it for anyone wanting the imagery at wall scale, and our wolf painting collection covers framed art for the same wall.

Everything for the room sits together in our wolf decor collection.