The term millefiori is a combination of the Italian words “mille” (thousand) and “fiori” (flowers). Millefiori began as a glasswork technique producing decorative mosaic patterns. This type of mosaic bead can be traced back to Ancient Rome, Phoenician and Alexandrian times but nowadays polymer clay is used for the same effect.
By squishing together rods of different colored clay the artist can create a whole range of interesting patterns.  Once the whole rod is complete slices are cut off which are then used as beads or pressed onto other objects for a beautifully rich effect.

TIP: If you are trying this technique at home it’s a good idea to chill your rods in the refrigerator before cutting off slices, and don’t forget to use a very sharp tissue blade for cutting. This ensures you get a clean cut and the colors don’t smear.

And don’t you just LOVE etsy?  Look, you can buy canes ready-made to cut, bake and use however you want!

Here are some examples of how artists use their canes to create mosaic patterns

But it doesn’t have to be flowers like the name implies.  The same techniques created these fun objects.

And this was my very first attempt at creating millefori…

This is a polymer clay technique that you can try at home very easily but it takes a lot of patience and practice to make perfect flowers (as you can see from mine!!).  I’d love to hear about your polymer clay work or finds, feel free to leave a comment or a link!