Millefiori, the art of a ‘thousand flowers‘

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Millefiori, an age-old mosaic technique which still thrills us today, dates back to the antiquity and was redisco-vered by Venetians in the 15th century for the art of glass making. The qualities and wide range of colours offered by FIMO make it easy to create these enchanting flower patterns. Flowers and leaves play the leading role in these beautiful creations. Unique patterns can be made with FIMO modelling clay and used on objects made out of glass, wood and metal as well as on other surfaces. Although the creation of the pattern canes themselves does require both time and effort, once theyíre done, objects can be decorated slice by slice in no time at all. How you arrange the pattern depends of course on the shape of the object to be decorated. On a picture frame, pattern pieces can be placed in a row along the sides to create an attractive edging; on small vases and pretty necklaces, they look most effective on their own. Get inspired and immerse yourself in the world of the FIMO millefiori technique. The many variations that can be created is simply fascinating - from large flowers and stars to miniature versions of the same motifs.

You will need the following STAEDTLER products:• one block each of FIMO classic in the colours leaf

green (8000-57), white (8000-0), turquoise (8000-32) and golden yellow (8000-15)

These colours are already included in the STAEDTLER FIMO ‘millefiori‘ Workshop Box along with lots of ideas and detailed instructions• a pasta machine enables you to make uniformly even sheets of FIMO• other useful utensils available from STAEDTLER include the bead roller for the creation of same-sized beads, the acrylic roller, FIMO blades and modelling tools FIMO gloss varnish can be used to add an attractive sheen to the surface of finished objects• we recommend the use of a transparent sleeve as a work surface

Step 1The grooves on the back of the blocks enable an exact portioning. Using the acrylic roller or pasta machine, roll out an approx. 3 mm thick sheet out of three portions of green FIMO. Mix half a strip of turquoise with three strips of yellow. Knead them together until an apple-green colour is created and then shape into a thick slab.

Step 3Cut the oval down the middle and press along the outside edges to make the dark green lines slope. Place both halves next to each other, making sure the ’veins‘ of the leaf are sloping in the same direction and add another layer of the dark colour between the two pieces. This creates the leaf pattern. Join the two halves together again by pressing carefully around the edge. Apply slightly more pressure towards the tip to create a leaf shape.

Step 2Divide the slab into 4 pieces and place a thin layer of the dark colour between each one. Then join them together again and form into an oval shape.

Step 4Another strip of the dark green colour is then wrapped around the outside.

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Step 5Form the leaf into a tip using your fingers and continue shaping until the pattern is uniform.

Step 7The grooves on the back of the blocks enable an exact portioning.Using the acrylic roller or pasta machine, roll out an approx. 3 mm thick sheet out of two portions of yellow FIMO. Shape three strips of white into a thick roll and do the same with three strips of turquoise too. Tip: Always begin with the lightest, most sensitive colour.

Step 6Here, you can see a smaller version which is created by a continued pressing and shaping of the pattern cane.When the cane is made thinner, the pattern looks distorted at the ends. The correct pattern can be seen when the ends are cut off.

Step 8Press the rolls to make them a little flatter and use the blade to cut them into quarters.

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Step 9Wrap strips from the sheets of yellow FIMO around the four blue pieces and arrange them in a row. Place three of the white pieces in the spaces in between.Cut the remaining quarter of white FIMO in half and use the two halves to finish off the ends. Carefully press around the edge to join the pattern together. Apply more pressure at the bottom in the middle in order to create a flower shape.

Step 11You can see here how a small triangle is made out of the large triangle.The long cane is now cut into six pieces of equal length. These are then put together to create a flower pattern.

Step 10Continue to press and shape the pattern until a triangular shape with three equally sized sides is created.

Step 12Roll the honeycomb-shaped cane in the palms of your hands until it is round.Here you can see the pattern in a smaller version too - this is created by a continued rolling of the cane.

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Step 13In order to be able to arrange the pattern correctly, it is important that all slices are equally thick. The FIMO cutting blade serves as an ideal tool here.

Step 14

Arrange the different FIMO patterns on the glass frame as required and then press on firmly.

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Step 15

In order to ensure that the surface is even, the pattern can be smoothed over again using the acrylic roller. The finished objects are hardened in the oven for around 30 minutes at 110 °C.Once cool, a thin coat of FIMO gloss varnish can be added.

We hope you have fun making, trying out and creating new ideas.