diy / growth chart ruler

since there is another growing baby on the way, i thought it would be fun to make a growth chart to compare the boys height and keep track of the growth spurts. this project was very affordable, and didn't take too much time to make, other than waiting for the stain and sealant to dry.

materials:

- pine wood (6'l  x 1'w x 1"d)

- stain - many different options, i chose 'golden oak' & a paintbrush or rag

- polycrylic protective finish (comes in spray or can) 

- ruler, measuring tape or right angle ruler

- sandpaper, fine or medium. (i used 150 grit)

- pencil & pen

- paint pen (or acrylic paint and paint brush)

- print out numbers 1-6; 200pt (bookman old style is the font i used) 

1. sand your piece of wood for any splinters, and smooth the edges. 

2. stain the wood, paint a thin layer, let dry for an hour and add a second coat if needed. wait a few more hours before handling. you want to make sure its dry. 

3. i started my ruler at 6 inches (so when i hang it, it will be 6 inches off the floor.) my ruler is 6 inches - 6 feet 6 inches. mark your ruler lines with pencil first then use the paint marker. it helps for me visually to look at another ruler. but you want your lines to be 2 inches long for your half foot and foot marks, 1.5 inches for quarter marks, and 1 inch for the rest of the marks. 

4. your numbers will go before the foot line marker. not under or after it. to make your number as perfect as possible, take your print out, and scribble the back of the number in pencil. flip it over, put it in position, and use a pen to draw on top the outline of your number. the pencil will act as a transfer. color in your number carefully with your paint pen. 

5. seal this baby up. take your polycrylic protective finish and give it a good spray. let it dry for a few hours (at least one hour). if you use a spray can, sometimes the finish can be a little scratchy once dry. take a rag and pretend it's sandpaper, give it a good scrub and this will smooth it out. 

6. i bought some extreme mounting tape. its double sided and will hold 20lbs (this might be 5lbs) i put a strip on the top and bottom. measured 6 inches off the ground and stuck it to the wall. this will give it a clean look and keep it flat against the wall. other hanging solutions include screwing it in, or using a saw tooth hanger.