DIY Growth Ruler Height Chart

We didn’t have a growth chart ruler when I was a kid. My dad would measure us and mark our height on a door frame. I vividly remember my father measuring my siblings and I when we were growing up. I don’t remember him doing it on the same day every year, but I definitely remember getting in trouble with my younger brother one year. He had a thing about needing to be taller than me, despite being younger. For a few years I got away with wearing long pants and standing just the slightest bit on my toes – no one noticed! But then one time I forgot. Everyone (truthfully, even I) was confused about how I could have shrunk. They will never let me forget it! 

Those are the kinds of memories that our whole family can look back on decades later and still laugh about. The best part is that since my father recorded it, we have definitive proof that I cheated. The bummer is that eventually, we know that for one reason or another, that wall of proof will eventually be painted over. Now that my husband and I are raising our daughter, we are constantly amazed by how fast she is growing! While we don’t have plans to move anywhere, I didn’t want to risk losing the “measuring wall” if something ever happened. That’s where this growth chart ruler comes in!

Peace of Mind

This growth chart “ruler” is awesome because it mounts to the wall, but is easily removed if we want to relocate. It also makes it a cute and personal design accent in our kitchen. Being the elementary school teacher that I am, this will also be an AMAZING teaching tool for integrating “math talk” in our conversations throughout the day… I can’t help it – you can’t take the teacher out of me.

Making the ruler was pretty simple. I used a plain 6 foot length 2”x6” board. I sanded it, and then stained it fairly dark to match the other shelves and wood accents in our home. After staining it, I hit it with a coat of one coat polyurethane. The quick dry stuff is great for projects that I’m not concerned about the texture of. It doesn’t dry as smooth as the multiple coats of regular poly so I wouldn’t use it on something like a coffee table, but it protects the wood perfectly fine.  

Once the stain was dry, I used my Cricut Maker to cut out vinyl markings and numbers (the measurement marks are every two inches, and the numbers mark each foot). I also made a cute little embellishment at the top: “Loved beyond measure.” Get it?! Anyway – I’m including the link to the cricut file. Just FYI, you’ll need to use a tape measure to place the markings in the right spot.

The important thing to know about applying the vinyl markings is that you don’t need to start them at zero. I actually started it about 6-8 inches up (so only two markings, at 10 inches and 1 foot). I mounted the board at the corresponding height on the wall. This allows space up to about 6 feet 4 inches, with some space above that for the embellishment.

Hanging the Ruler

Once all the markings were applied to the growth chart, I flipped the board over to install d-ring mounting hardware. This is definitely not necessary. I installed it because I planned to hang it. I also used a single 3m removable strip at the bottom to keep the ruler stable when it gets bumped. Hanging it was tricky, mostly because I needed to make sure it was hung at exactly the correct height to correspond with the markings. 

Now all that is left to do is measure everyone and enjoy watching your family grow over the years. You’ve got the comfort of knowing that you’ll never have to worry about losing those precious reminders the years gone by!

Here is the link to the cricut project to make this growth ruler height chart!

Growing your family? Check out my 7 Must-Have Items for Life With a Baby!