K’s Trends — Kexcelled × Noodo Lab
When 3D Printing Meets the Noodle Master
Where Material Becomes Creation
K’s Trends is Kexcelled’s ongoing creative collaboration platform, dedicated to exploring how advanced materials participate in contemporary design practice.
Rather than treating materials as passive tools, Kexcelled is documenting the real dialogue between creativity and CMF to discover how material behavior can shape aesthetics, structure, and experience.
For this edition, we step into the experimental world of Noodo Lab.
Designer Spotlight — Noodo Lab
Based in Hong Kong, Noodo Lab is a design and fabrication studio exploring new possibilities through parametric design, digital fabrication, and material experimentation.
Their work challenges a common perception of 3D printing — that printed objects inevitably carry a “plastic” identity. Instead of hiding layer lines, Noodo Lab amplifies them, transforming what is often considered a limitation into a defining texture and visual language.
Through algorithm-driven geometries and controlled material behavior, technology and aesthetics merge into objects that feel simultaneously industrial and poetic.
Material in Trends
THE K5™ PLA M | 24
The project 24 transforms time into physical form.
Inspired by the 24 hours of a day and the traditional Chinese solar calendar of twenty-four seasonal divisions, the clock embodies cyclical rhythm and temporal flow. The spiral body grows layer by layer, gradually forming a soft vessel-like structure before gently folding inward at its peak.
A subtle crease supports the minute hand, allowing it to glide along the surface as if embedded within the object itself. Time is no longer displayed mechanically — it unfolds quietly as motion and form.
Material Contribution
Stable printing behavior for continuous geometry
Precise layer articulation enhancing visual rhythm
Structural consistency supporting complex curvature
With PLA M, layer lines become intentional texture rather than technical residue.
THE K5™ PLA P | 12
12 is the desktop interpretation of 24, scaled down to 50% while preserving its conceptual integrity.
The design continues its exploration of temporal cycles, compressing the experience of time into a more intimate domestic object. The layered spiral grows upward before softly returning inward, maintaining harmony between structure and motion.
The reduced scale demonstrates how material reliability enables precision without compromising emotional presence.
Material Contribution
High dimensional accuracy at smaller scale
Clean surface definition
Balanced rigidity for functional movement
THE K5™ PLA Wood | The Balloon
Somewhere in memory, a hot-air balloon rises slowly — calm, weightless, and full of quiet anticipation. The Balloon lighting series originates from this emotional imagery.
More than a lamp, it represents a gentle atmosphere capable of softening everyday environments.
Inspired by the rounded silhouette of a floating balloon, each piece appears lightly filled with air, suspended between motion and stillness. The wood-filled material introduces subtle grain-like particles that diffuse light warmly, reminiscent of a sunset sky.
As illumination passes through the surface, the object becomes both light source and emotional anchor — bringing warmth not only to space, but to experience.
Material Contribution
Natural tactile surface
Soft light diffusion
Organic visual warmth enabled by material texture
THE K5™ PETG Transparent + THE K5™ PLA P | Sansan
The Sansan lampshade draws inspiration from Hong Kong’s iconic embossed glass windows — familiar textures deeply embedded in the city’s interior memory.
Its form references the traditional Chinese Begonia motif, symbolizing happiness and good fortune. Cultural symbolism and contemporary fabrication meet within a single object.
Fine surface relief recreates the tactile quality of pressed glass. When illuminated, light disperses gently through the patterned surface, producing a calm and nostalgic atmosphere.
Material Contribution
Optical clarity supporting light transmission
Surface detail reproduction
Balance between transparency and structure
Through material exploration, cultural memory is translated into modern additive design.
Designer Insight
Working with Kexcelled materials allowed us to reconsider the meaning of layer lines. Instead of imperfections to hide, they became part of the design language itself.
Material behavior directly influences our creative decisions — from geometry and scale to emotional perception.
Designers’ Perspective on Kexcelled
In contemporary digital fabrication, materials are no longer passive mediums — they actively shape design decisions.
We invited Noodo Lab to share their experience working with Kexcelled materials.
Q: What was your first impression of Kexcelled materials?
Noodo Lab: During the early days of founding Noodo Lab, we conducted extensive comparative testing across multiple filament brands.
When we first tried Kexcelled K5 PLA M, its refined matte texture immediately stood out. What impressed us most was that even without enabling fuzzy skin mode, the layer definition remained exceptionally clean, almost eliminating the typical low-cost plastic appearance associated with FDM printing.
This level of surface refinement aligns perfectly with our pursuit of balance between digital artistry and industrial aesthetics.
Q: Do materials influence your design decisions?
Noodo Lab: Absolutely. We strongly believe that materials define form.
Even within the same material family, different colors exhibit subtle variations in flow behavior and cooling shrinkage. For this reason, we perform stress and performance testing for each color variant to determine:
Maximum achievable overhang angles
Optimal extrusion flow rates
Structural stability limits
Kexcelled’s extensive color palette gives us remarkable creative freedom, allowing us to tailor 3D-printed objects to different spatial environments and interior aesthetics.
Q: What are your expectations for future Kexcelled materials?
Noodo Lab: We are particularly excited about Kexcelled’s upcoming materials incorporating coffee grounds, tea waste, and bamboo fibers. Transforming biological waste into a design language resonates strongly with our studio’s sustainability direction.
As digital fabrication increasingly expands into landscape installations and large-scale exhibitions, we also hope to see materials designed for:
High-flow pellet extrusion systems
Enhanced weather resistance
Improved UV stability
so that 3D printed works can move beyond indoor environments into outdoor public spaces.
Purchase & Designer Contact
If you are interested in purchasing the featured works or collaborating with the designer, please reach out through the official channels below:
Designer Official Channels
🌐 Website:
www.noodolab.co
📷 Instagram:
@noodolab
Materials Featured in This Project
THE K5™ PLA M
THE K5™ PLA P
THE K5™ PLA Wood
THE K5™ PETG Transparent
Explore how each material performs across aesthetic, functional, and experimental applications.
Join K’s Trends
Are you a designer, artist, or studio creating with Kexcelled materials?
We invite you to become part of K’s Trends — a growing global platform connecting material innovation with creative practice.
Submit your project and help redefine what additive manufacturing can become.