What’s New at TML Fun Creations – New Designs, New Cameras & More 3D Printing

It’s been a busy summer here at TML Fun Creations, and I wanted to take a few minutes to share some of what’s been happening behind the scenes.

A lot has changed in the shop over the past few months. I’ve been working on new camera housings, adding more custom designs, expanding the off-road duck collection, and continuing to improve how products are designed, tested, and printed.

One thing definitely hasn’t changed: I still enjoy taking an idea, figuring out how to make it work, and turning it into something useful or fun.

More Camera Housings Are Being Added

Camera housings continue to be one of the biggest areas of growth in the shop.

I’ve been adding designs for more Ring, Eufy, Google Nest, Reolink, Arlo, Blink, SimpliSafe, and other cameras.

Some are decorative woven planter-style covers, while others are birdhouse-style outdoor housings.

The goal is always the same: make the camera blend into its surroundings while keeping the lens, sensors, microphone, speaker, charging ports, and other important features clear and functional.

Every new camera model presents a slightly different challenge. Lens locations change, sensors move, mounting systems are different, and even small size differences can require an entirely new design.

That’s part of what makes these projects interesting.

Custom Camera Designs Are Becoming a Bigger Part of the Shop

More and more customers have been reaching out with cameras that I haven’t designed for yet. Those requests have led to some of my favorite projects.

In many cases, a customer sends me the camera model and a few measurements, and I begin designing a housing specifically around it.

Some cameras are only slightly different from an existing design, while others require starting almost completely from scratch.

If you have a camera that isn’t currently listed in the shop, send me the model and what kind of housing you’re looking for. I’ll be happy to see what I can come up with.

The Off-Road Duck Collection Keeps Growing

The duck side of the shop has been growing too.

What started with a few fun designs has turned into a much larger collection featuring

military themes, schools, sports-inspired designs, patriotic ducks, robots, occupations, custom colors, and plenty of other ideas.

Some of the best designs have come directly from customer requests.

I’ve also been doing more personalized ducks for gifts, graduations, team celebrations, cruises, and special events.

Because these are 3D printed, there’s a lot of flexibility when it comes to changing colors, adding accessories, or creating something completely new.

If you have a strange duck idea, there’s a pretty good chance I’ll at least try to figure out how to make it.

The Southern Belle Duck Collection

One of the more unique collections I’ve been working on is the Southern Belle Duck Collection.

These ducks feature detailed dresses, oversized hats, bows, and coordinated colors that give each one its own personality. The collection includes several color combinations, including green, purple, pink, and red, with interchangeable hat and bow pieces that make the designs even more fun.

Like many of the products in the shop, these started as an idea and went through several design changes before everything fit and printed the way I wanted it to. The dresses, hats, bows, and small decorative details all had to work together while still keeping the classic duck shape.

They’ve also opened the door to more custom possibilities for cruises, parties, gifts, special events, and personalized color combinations.

I’m continuing to expand the collection, so you can expect to see more Southern Belle styles and variations added in the future.

More Multi-Color and Detailed Printing

The equipment and software in the shop continue to improve, which gives me more options when creating new products.

Newer printers make it possible to create more detailed multi-color designs, use different materials within the same project, and produce parts that would have been much more difficult just a few years ago.

The design side has grown right along with the printing side. I use CAD and 3D-design software to build functional parts, create custom camera housings, modify existing designs, and develop completely new products from an idea or a set of measurements. Newer design tools also make it easier to experiment with shapes and concepts before moving into the final engineering and test-printing stages.

That doesn’t mean every design works perfectly the first time.

Sometimes something looks great on the computer and then the printer decides it has other plans. That usually means adjusting tolerances, changing supports, redesigning a connection, changing how parts fit together, or printing another test version.

There are plenty of prototypes and test prints behind most of the finished products you see in the shop.

Designing Products for the Environment They’ll Be Used In

Material selection is another area I take seriously.

For products that will be used outdoors, I generally use materials such as ABS or ASA rather than standard PLA whenever appropriate.

PLA is a great material for many indoor decorations and display pieces, but outdoor conditions can be much harder on a 3D print.

Heat, sunlight, rain, and temperature changes all matter.

Using the right material helps make outdoor products more durable and better suited for where they’ll actually be used.

Testing Is Still an Important Part of the Process

One thing I try not to do is design something, print it once, and immediately assume it works.

Camera housings in particular usually go through several test versions.

I check fit, camera angle, lens clearance, sensor visibility, cable routing, mounting, and how easily the camera can be installed or removed.

Sometimes a difference of only a few millimeters is enough to require another revision.

That testing takes extra time, but I’d rather make those corrections here than have a customer discover them after the product arrives.

There’s a Lot More Coming

I already have several new products and design ideas in progress.

That includes more camera models, new decorative camera housings, additional outdoor products, new duck designs, customized gifts, and a few projects that are still in the experimental stage.

Some will make it into the shop quickly.

Others may require quite a few test prints first.

That’s pretty normal around here.

Have an Idea? Send It My Way

A surprising number of products in the shop started with a message from someone asking:

“Can you make something for this?”

Sometimes the answer is easy.

Sometimes it turns into a completely new design project.

Either way, I’m always interested in hearing new ideas.

If you need a housing for a camera I don’t currently offer, want a custom off-road duck, need a modification to an existing product, or simply have an idea for something that might be possible with 3D printing, feel free to reach out.

I can’t promise every idea will work, but I’m always willing to take a look.

Thank you to everyone who has ordered, sent photos, suggested new products, left reviews, and trusted me to build something custom.

Your ideas have helped TML Fun Creations grow into something much bigger than I originally expected.

And there’s still plenty more to come.

Thanks for supporting TML Fun Creations!

TML