We Made the Top 2! Inside Our AS Colour Little Help Project 2026 Entry
Apparently, when you give The Fabric Printer team an AS Colour Heavy Crew, a competition brief and permission to go completely over the top, we do not know when to stop.
Our entry for AS Colour’s 2026 Little Help Project, affectionately named Print Wars, has officially made the Top 2, placing our very nerdy, very technical and very TFP creation among the competition’s final two entries.
There may have been some very excited yelling in the factory when we found out. Just a little bit.
The Little Help Project celebrates the people who take an AS Colour blank garment and make it completely their own. This year’s brief called for work on AS Colour sweats, headwear or heavy canvas, with entries judged on creativity, craftsmanship and the potential to help a business grow.
So, naturally, we decided one decoration method would absolutely not be enough.
Meet Print Wars
Print Wars is basically our love letter to garment decoration, disguised as a space adventure.
The artwork transforms our production floor into its own slightly chaotic galaxy. Our TAS screen-printing machine became the ship, complete with our two screen printers on board. The orange-haired character is our manager, Sally, reimagined with a little fierce space-hero energy.
Across the back, embroidered details, characters and production references turn the crew behind the job into part of the artwork itself.
It is fun at first glance, but the design was built around real production processes we use in-house, including artwork preparation, colour separation, screen printing, DTG, embroidery and appliqué.
This was not a digital mock-up made to look clever on a screen. We designed it, separated it, printed it, embroidered it and assembled it in-house, then produced 30 finished garments for our team, family and friends.
It had to work as an actual piece of decorated apparel, not just as a competition concept.
One Garment, a Ridiculous Amount of Technique
The base garment is the AS Colour Heavy Crew 5145, a heavyweight 400 GSM crew made from 80% cotton and 20% recycled polyester CVC fleece. The garment is suitable for screen printing, DTG and embroidery, which made it a practical base for the combination of decoration techniques used across Print Wars.
And we really did throw a lot at it.
The front features a nine-colour print created from an original illustration that was designed, colour separated and prepared entirely in-house.
The artwork combines plastisol with water-based specialty inks, metallic shimmer, neon colour and UV-reactive effects. It is a good example of how screen printing can move well beyond a basic one- or two-colour logo when the artwork, ink selection and separation process are planned for more complex effects.
Under normal light, the artwork already has plenty going on. Under black light, hidden details and colours come alive.
One of the specialty inks changes appearance again in direct sunlight, shifting from black to purple. The result is a print that changes depending on where you see it, because apparently a normal front print felt far too sensible for us.
Adding DTG-Printed Appliqué to the Sleeves
The sleeves pushed the job into another form of garment decoration altogether.
We printed artwork directly onto AS Colour Canvas Carrier Totes using our Brother GTX printers. DTG printing allowed us to reproduce the detailed artwork digitally before the printed canvas sections were cut into individual patches.
Those patches were then embroidered onto the Heavy Crew as appliqué.
We also added raised 3D embroidery and smaller stitched details around the garment. Embroidery introduces a completely different texture from printed artwork, so we used the raised and appliqué elements to give certain characters and details more depth rather than trying to make every part of the garment look the same.
Across Print Wars, you will find:
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A nine-colour, in-house screen print
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Plastisol and water-based inks used together
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Metallic shimmer and neon details
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Black-light-reactive elements
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Colour-changing ink activated by sunlight
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DTG printing onto AS Colour canvas
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Cut-and-sewn embroidered appliqué
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Raised 3D embroidery
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Smaller embroidered details throughout
Each technique behaves differently.
Screen printing requires the artwork to be separated and prepared around individual colours and ink effects. DTG prints detailed artwork directly onto the fabric without requiring a separate screen for each colour, while embroidery requires the design to be translated into stitches with consideration given to fabric stability, placement and how raised elements will sit on the garment.
Getting all of those processes onto one crew was one challenge. Making them feel like they genuinely belonged together was the bigger one.
The People Behind the Print
Print Wars may have one name on the entry, but it was never a one-person job.
Ryan developed the whole concept and illustration in-house, somehow turning our loose collection of ideas, machines, team references and slightly unhinged requests into artwork that could actually be produced.
From there, the design moved through artwork setup, colour separation, screen preparation, screen printing, DTG, embroidery, appliqué and finishing.
Our screen printers, embroidery team, digital team, artwork crew and production team all had a hand in bringing it together.
Even the credits printed across the lower back of the garment became part of the design because this piece belongs to the whole TFP crew. An extra shoutout goes to Ryan for developing the entire illustration in-house.
The Fabric Printer has been printing apparel in Perth since 1994, but it is rare that the production team gets to become its own customer.
There was no client asking us to rein it in, no budget line telling us the ninth colour might be a bit much and no one saying, “Do we really need it to glow as well?”
For the record, yes. It absolutely needed to glow.
Why the Little Help Project Matters to Us
The Little Help Project is not only about producing something impressive. Entrants also need to explain how the prize could help their business grow.
For us, the prize would help turn an idea we have been developing into something we could take beyond the factory floor.
We would use the AS Colour credit to help launch a mobile customisation setup, including portable printing equipment and compact embroidery options that could travel to festivals, brand activations, markets and industry events.
Instead of only showing people finished merchandise, the setup could bring part of the production experience directly to the event.
Attendees could see garments being decorated, understand how the process works and potentially leave with something personalised specifically for them.
For brands, it creates another way to make merchandise part of the experience itself rather than treating it only as something handed out at the end. It is an idea that fits naturally with the event merchandise work we already produce for businesses, organisations and event teams.
A travelling setup would also give people a much closer look at what goes into custom apparel, from choosing the blank garment and artwork through to seeing the final decoration come to life.
From a Wild Idea to the Top 2
Being selected for the Top 2 is a massive moment for us, especially among entries from decorators, creators and artists around the world.
We are proud of the finished garment, but even more importantly, Print Wars represents what can happen when an idea moves across different departments instead of being limited to one production method.
A garment can be much more than a logo on the chest.
Screen printing can introduce bold spot colours and specialty ink effects. Embroidery can add texture, structure and dimension, while DTG can reproduce detailed, full-colour artwork without requiring a separate screen for every print colour.
When those techniques are considered together from the artwork stage onwards, the garment itself becomes part of the design.
That same thinking can be applied to custom branded merchandise without every project needing nine print colours, UV effects and an embroidered space crew. The important part is choosing decoration methods that suit the artwork, garment and end result you are trying to create.
Print Wars just happens to be a fairly extreme demonstration of what those methods can do together.
It is loud, layered, a little bit nerdy and packed with details you will not notice all at once.
Basically, it is very us.
What Happens Next?
Now that Print Wars has made the final two, the overall Little Help Project winner will be decided through a public vote on AS Colour’s Instagram. The two finalists will be featured on 1 September 2026, with the public poll remaining open for 24 hours before voting closes on 2 September.
For now, we are celebrating making it this far and trying not to refresh Instagram every four minutes. No promises there.
We will update this page as the Little Help Project progresses.
In the meantime, you can follow The Fabric Printer on Instagram for a closer look at Print Wars under normal light, black light and direct sunlight, along with more of the screen printing, embroidery and appliqué work that went into producing it.
Want to create merchandise that goes beyond a standard logo print? Explore our custom apparel printing and decoration services, or get in touch with our Perth team to talk through the garment, artwork and decoration options for your project.
FAQs About Our AS Colour Little Help Project Entry
What Is the AS Colour Little Help Project?
The Little Help Project is AS Colour’s global competition for decorators, creators and artists who take AS Colour blank garments and transform them into original decorated pieces.
Entries are assessed on factors including creativity, craftsmanship and how the prize could help the entrant grow their business.
What Garment Did The Fabric Printer Use?
We created Print Wars on the AS Colour Heavy Crew 5145, a heavyweight 400 GSM crew made from 80% cotton and 20% recycled polyester CVC fleece. Its weight and construction, combined with its suitability for screen printing, DTG and embroidery, made it a practical base for the combination of decoration techniques used in the design.
What Decoration Techniques Did You Use?
Print Wars combines three main garment decoration processes with several specialty techniques.
The garment includes a nine-colour screen print, plastisol and water-based inks, metallic shimmer, neon colour, black-light-reactive details and colour-changing ink.
We also used DTG printing to produce artwork on AS Colour canvas before cutting the printed sections into appliqué patches. Those patches were embroidered onto the garment alongside raised 3D embroidery and smaller stitched details.
Can You Combine Screen Printing, DTG and Embroidery on One Garment?
Yes, but the artwork and production sequence need to be carefully planned because each decoration method behaves differently.
Artwork preparation, garment construction, print placement and the order in which each process is completed all need to be considered before production begins.
Combining methods can introduce more colour, texture and dimension than relying on a single decoration process. Print Wars is a fairly extreme example of just how far that approach can be taken.
Was the Artwork Designed by The Fabric Printer?
Yes.
The concept, illustration and production setup were completed in-house. Ryan developed the original artwork, with our screen printing, digital, embroidery, artwork and production teams all contributing to the finished garment.
Can The Fabric Printer Create Specialty Merchandise Like This for Customers?
Yes, although your project definitely does not need nine print colours, UV effects and an entire embroidered space crew to be special.
The best combination depends on factors such as the garment, artwork, order quantity, decoration locations and the type of finish you want to achieve.
The Fabric Printer works across screen printing, embroidery, DTG and DTF, so the decoration method can be selected around the artwork, garment, quantity, print locations and the finish the project needs rather than applying the same process to every job.
