Magnificent Millefiori

I was introduced to millefiori several years ago by a friend.

She had been to France, toured the Murano Glass Company,

and purchased a beautiful millefiori pendant.

Millefiori is a glasswork technique which produces distinctive

decorative patterns on glassware. The term millefiori is a combination

of the Italian words "mille" (thousand) and "fiori" (flowers).

The millefiori technique involves the production of glass canes or rods,

known as murrine, with multicolored patterns which are viewable

only from the cut ends of the cane. A murrine rod is heated in a furnace,

pulled until thin while still maintaining the cross section's design,

and then cut into beads or discs when cooled.

I've since purchased these three pieces for myself....a paperweight...

And a couple of pendants. I think I like it so much because it reminds me of these favorite childhood candies. Kind of made with the same process.... just sugar instead of glass!