The miniemulsion technique offers the possibility for the encapsulation of different materials, ranging from liquid to solid, from organic to inorganic, and from molecularly dissolved to aggregated species into polymeric nanoparticles or nanocapsules. Using this technique, a wide variety of novel functional nanomaterials can be generated. This review focuses on the preparation of functional nanostructures by encapsulating organic or inorganic material in polymeric nanoparticles. The examples demonstrate the possibilities to protect the encapsulated material as dyes, pigments, fragrances, photo-initiators, drugs, magnetite, or even DNA, use them as marker systems (dyes, magnetite), or create nanoparticles with completely new properties.