Loch Ness · VERIFIED OR VIBES? · Lucky charms
By Camille G., founder of Loch Ness · Published September 27, 2026 · Last updated September 27, 2026
The last of our four lucky charm meanings, and the one that asks the most of a seller. The dreamcatcher has a documented origin, and a commercial history that many Indigenous people criticize.
Where it comes from
The dreamcatcher comes from the Ojibwe. Ethnographer Frances Densmore recorded two spider webs hung on a hoop, said to catch any harm in the air the way a web catches whatever touches it. In his Ojibway Heritage (1976), elder Basil Johnston tells the story of Spider, asabikeshiinh, “little net maker” (Wikipedia).
How it became a souvenir
Dreamcatchers spread to other nations and, from the 1960s and 1970s, became a pan-Indian symbol; many Native Americans now see them as over-commercialized and misused by non-Natives (Wikipedia). The Indigenous Foundation dates the appropriation to the 1970s, when the object was reduced to “catching bad dreams”. Its position is clear: when non-Native people make and sell dreamcatchers, it is cultural appropriation; when Indigenous people do, it isn’t (The Indigenous Foundation).
Verdict: 🟢 for the Ojibwe origin, documented by an ethnographer and an Ojibwe elder. The ethics of selling one are a separate question, answered below.
Our dreamcatcher charm
Our dreamcatcher is a small mass-produced metal charm, a nod to the design. By The Indigenous Foundation’s standard, selling it is appropriation, and we want you to know that before you buy.
If you are thinking of wearing one: can you wear a dreamcatcher if you’re not Native?
The other classics
What the evil eye really means · four-leaf clover rarity · horseshoe up or down
Sources
Update log
September 27, 2026 — First publication.
About the author — Camille G., founder of Loch Ness
Full-stack developer and self-taught jewelry maker since 2013, Camille designs and codes every interactive experience on Loch Ness Lab — from the healing crystal bracelet configurator to the free tools at lochness-paris.com/apps, including the research behind the creativity test’s scoring algorithm.