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Measure As They Grow… $3 Growth Chart

I’ve seen so many awesome growth charts lately and the fact that Wyatt is going to be four this year has me scrambling to hold onto his toddler years! I have always loved growth charts, but when he was a baby we were constantly moving from place to place. Now that we are finally in a house – and plan to stay here for some time – I thought it was time to finally make a growth chart to track my boys’ growth. Ruler Growth Chart Tutorial I headed to Lowe’s and found a board that was 6x2x8 for less than $3. I think that is the way the measurements go? 8 foot tall, two inches thick, 6 inches wide? Something like that – I’m not up on all the lingo folks!

Ruler Growth Chart Tutorial Anyways – I took it to my dad and had him cut it down to 6 1/2 feet tall, brought it home and sanded it down. Ruler Growth Chart Tutorial
Then I pulled out some stain (Miniwax – Early American) and went to town. Thankfully I remembered what happened to my hands last time I used this stain and found some gloves first! The time I forgot gloves I looked like I had dirt under my fingernails for a week – yuck!! Ruler Growth Chart Tutorial Ruler Growth Chart Tutorial Let it dry overnight… Ruler Growth Chart Tutorial
The next night I took a sheet of black vinyl (cricut vinyl) and cut it into 1/4 inch strips. Then I figured out the spacing and length of each strip so that I could make the board look like a ruler. At each foot I put a 4 inch strip, at each 1/2 foot I put a 2.5 inch strip, and at each 1/4 foot I put a 1.5 inch strip. The tricky part is that our entire house has molding along the floor, so I had to start the measurements at 6 inches and then I knew I would have to make sure it hung exactly 6 inches from the ground so measurements would be correct. So much math involved… I guess that is okay as long as it isn’t science! Excuse the next few photos as they were taken into the wee hours of the night! Ruler Growth Chart Tutorial Then I cut out numbers for each foot and ‘Sapp Family’ with my cricut. Ruler Growth Chart Tutorial Tada! Looks so lovely in daylight! Ruler Growth Chart Tutorial Then I called over my carpenter (AKA my dad), and had him figure out how to hang the growth chart on the wall at exactly 6 inches off the ground! He arrived with his doctors bag in hand… Ruler Growth Chart Tutorial It is now hanging on the wall. Pictures to come! I just have to figure out how to get some good low light pictures because we hung it in the hallway and there is no natural light! All of my pictures keep coming out yellowish! The only thing I had to buy for this project was the wood which cost me less than $3. I had all of the other supplies. Until then ENJOY! I’m off to see how tall this kids of mine are!
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