Native American Blankets
Native American blankets can be used as a normal blanket, but many people like to use them for the sole purpose of decorating their southwestern style room. Native American blankets are usually intricately woven by hand by Native American women, and the beauty that can be found within some of the Native woven blankets can not be equaled. Many big companies will mass produce many Native American blankets and sell them for fairly cheap prices, but if you are looking for real hand woven Native blankets you need to check out shops on different Native American Indian reservations, or else if you live in an area with a large Native American population the chances are there are Indian craft stores for you to shop at as well.
The Native Americans originally wove these blankets to wrap themselves in during cold weather and also for use on their beds to keep warm at night. Some of the first authentic Indian blankets were made from things like buffalo hide; but the majority of them were woven from natural fibers which they would sometimes die with dies that they would make from different plants. Once the Europeans settled in American and began to move west, they discovered the beautiful blankets the Native Americans created and began to seek them out as trade items. They became very popular among the European settlers that were migrating to the west of the United States and many of the trading posts would have plenty of Indian blankets in stock at any given time.
On of the tribes most famous for their Native American blankets were the Navajo Indians, and to them the art of blanket weaving was a sacred task that the Native women took very seriously. Navajo legend states that the tradition of blanket weaving comes from a spirit person the Native Americans called Spider Woman. In Navajo mythology she taught the Natives to weave on looms that were designed by another spirit person called Spider Man. The looms that were used by the Navajo women to make these Native American blankets were usually crafted by the men of the tribes, and the women did all the weaving. The Native Americans were also famous for other weaving crafts such as their Native American rugs and their patchwork quilted blankets. These blankets and rugs made by the hands of Native American women can still easily be found nowadays but they are usually very expensive, but when you buy an authentic Native American blanket you will have a certificate of authenticity from the tribe that made it, and you will also have a very high quality piece of Native American history.