Project #15 - Los ojos de Dios / Gods Eyes

Materials - Sticks, yarn (optional, plastic yarn), scissors

Making - 1.  Cut several pieces of different colors of yarn. I cut pieces about 2 yards (72") long. 

2.  Tie all of the pieces together using slip knots, so that you have one long multi-colored strand of yarn.

3.  Choose two sticks that are similar in size and form a cross shape.

4.  Tie one end of the yarn into a square knot diagonally around the intersection of the sticks. Then tie another square knot diagonally in the other direction.
5.  Begin wrapping. Think of the two sticks as forming four spokes (like the spokes on a bike wheel). Wrap each spoke on time in the same direction, under and around the top, then move to the next spoke and do the exact same wrap, under and around the top.

6. Continue in this way, making sure that you are always turning the cross in the same direction, and wrapping the yarn around the spokes in the same direction. 

7. Also make sure that each time that you wrap the yarn, you are wrapping it next to the previous wrap, and not on top of it.

8.  When you run out of yarn, you can add more, or you can tie a knot around the last spoke to finish.

9.  It's a good idea to end with enough yarn to create a loop, so that you can hang up your gods eye.

 

God's eye or Ojo de Dios on Quemado Mountain, San Luis Potosi, Mexico

Inspiration - Los ojos de dios, or gods eyes, originate from pre-columbian cultural and spiritual practices in Mexico. They are hung in homes, work places or placed along paths of travel. Some think they represent the power to see things that are unseen with our eyes, or that they offer protection. The Huichol people of Mexico refer to ojo de dios as a "sikuli".  When a father's first child is born, he weaves a "sikuli" with one eye. For each additional child that is born, the father weaves an addditional eye.