How to Make a Growth Chart

I’ve always wanted a way to track how my daughter grows over the years but I wanted something that one, I could take with me if we ever moved and two, that didn’t look tacky. So I decided to make this wooden growth chart! It was super easy and you can do it a variety of ways. I’ve previously made them by staining the wood and using a black paint pen you can buy at Hobby Lobby. For this one I had a request to match a nursery so I used paint. All the steps are the same. That’s what’s great about this project. You can make it any color you want!

Start with a 8 in x 1 in board that’s six feet long. You can get this at any lumber store.

Now either stain it whatever color you want or paint it. I recommend using a light color stain or paint so that the colors will show up. I used some left over Annie Sloan chalk paint and watered it down a bit so the grain still comes through.

Let it dry completely. Now get your measuring tape and lay it across the board. Start measuring every inch starting at 6 inches. You will hang the board six inches from the floor and the board will measure up to 6 foot 6 inches.

After that, draw out the hash marks. I make each inch mark two inches long and each foot mark 4 inches long. I start with a pencil first so I can make sure it’s all level. I think typically the black paint pen covers up the pencil better but I went over the hash marks a couple of times and it worked out fine.

Next I printed out numbers 1-6 to the size and shape I wanted and cut them out. I laid them on the ruler and traced around them. I just eye balled the placement.