A self-confessed "ink addict" who has at least 85% of his body covered in tattoos has opened up about how he's "judged as a tattooed dad" and criticised for his romance with his younger wife.

Richard Huff, 51, and his wife Marita, 29, have seven children — including two boys from Richard's previous relationship, two boys and a girl from Marita's previous relationship and twin boys they share together.

But despite insisting they're "no different" from any other family, the couple often receives abuse from strangers who call Richard a "monster" because of his heavily inked body.

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Richard was just 17 when he got his first tattoo while getting ready to join the US Navy and things quickly escalated.

He told Truly: "It became an addiction, I started with my legs and worked my way up because then you could not have any on your arm or anywhere that could be seen at that point."

Now Richard, from Hesperia, California, has covered almost his entire body in tattoos, including getting his kids' names tattooed on his face and his daughter's lips on his forehead.

He doesn't plan to stop anytime soon though, adding: "I approximately have 85% to 90% of my body covered, I probably have over 240 tattoos. I want to be 100% covered in tattoos probably within the next four years."

The dad of seven confessed he "loves" the feeling of getting tattoos as he admitted he has "ink fever".

"I don't know if it's the pain or the artwork that you put on you but it just becomes fascinating when you're able to do this," he explained.

But his extreme look has left his kids' school friends calling him "scary".

Explaining what children at her school say about Richard's unique look, his nine-year-old daughter, Amyah, said: “They say, ‘ah it’s a bit scary’ and I say ‘no my dad is not scary, he is good with tattoos'."

One of his sons revealed his classmates will ask "whose dad is that?" when they see Richard, but he proudly tells them: "It's mine".

Marita even admitted she was initially scared of Richard the first time she met him, but soon changed her mind.

"I thought I was going to get robbed. I did judge Richard based on his looks at first but as I got to know him a little bit, he is actually a big-hearted person," she said.

The mum, who's heavily tatted herself — including having "Richard" inscribed across her neck — even wants to follow in her husband's footsteps.

"I think one day in the future I'll catch up to Richard," she said.

But she revealed there is one thing she won't do, adding: "The face is off limits, this beautiful face can't be covered".

Richard claims his tattoos have never "stepped in the way" of him being a father.

"I participate in the PTA, I go to all my kids' functions," he said.

But online trolls have a different opinion, with Richard and Marita revealing people have left them cruel comments on social media.

One person wrote: "How did you choose a monster to be your child's father?"

Another added: "I think the baby is scared".

While a third said: "I would cry if I had a dad like that".

Richard thinks the tattoos aren't the only reason his wife gets slated for being with him.

"The age gap has a lot to do with it online because Marita is 29 years old and I'm 51 so people take that into consideration why she would want to be with somebody like me," he said.

But he doesn't let the criticism phase him, explaining: "If somebody can make negative comments like that, there's something wrong with them themselves that they would have to judge somebody else."

He added: "This is what we did and we're happy. We've been together six years our kids are happy and to us, that's all that matters."

Offline, Richard's extreme look has also seen him get into trouble, including even being stopped by the police on one occasion.

He recalled: "One time I had my son in the car and Jaden was still a baby and I got pulled over, they had the helicopter on me and everything because they were looking for another gentleman."

But he claimed it's not all bad, adding: " I get more positive reactions in person than I do negative."

He wants people to realise his tattoos don't impact his role as a dad as he claims they're actually beneficial to his kids' lives.

"Having tattoos does not scare my children, it does not make me a bad father, it makes my kids get a different perspective on life," he said.

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