A POPULAR Randwick tattoo artist has returned from Germany after receiving another first prize award.

'Lucky Charlie' Mills spent a weekend in Münster at the Starfire Tattoo Weekend, winning first place in the Best of Traditional category on Sunday, August 6 with his colourful rose design.

Earlier this year, Charlie also won second prize in a competition with another rose design, spending hours perfecting his inking skills.

The tattoo took around three and a half hours to complete, and saw Charlie walk away with another trophy to add to his collection.

“I’m absolutely over the moon,” he told the SNJ.

On Saturday, September 2, it will be two years since Charlie opened up his studio ‘Lucky Charlie’s Tattoo Studio’ at his home in Randwick.

The decision followed a near-fatal motorbike accident that saw the talented artist lose his left arm.

Fortunately, this has not stopped him following his dreams, and two years on his business is going from strength to strength.

His competition work has given him the opportunity to show off his style with people now coming to him asking him to do something more artistic opposed to traditional tattoos.

Showing another sign of his determination, Charlie also decided to take a slightly longer route to his recent competition, driving the 1,000 mile trip to Münster – alone.

With more competitions coming up, Charlie has set his sights on going to the top.

“I’m going to keep going to conventions around the UK and Europe and learning from other artists to keep improving,” he said.