I wanted to share this quick little tutorial for how to make a growth chart for your home. Being pregnant really gets you thinking of things you did when you were a kid. Will and I have really had a lot of spare time to sit around and talk about what kinds of parents we want to be. Sometimes we get real deep. But that is another story for another day. But one day I was remembering how growing up my mom used to have us all stand with our backs to the wall in the kitchen and she would write on the wall how tall we had become. But when my parents moved in 2008, they lost all those markings, as my childhood home was bulldozed to the ground and replaced with a Harris Teeter shopping center or some other commercial shopping center. Luckily Pinterest saved the day and I found tons of inspirations for making a growth chart that we can take with us when we move houses in a few years and hopefully will stay with us for years and years.
Here are some of the inspiration photos I found on Pinterest:
I liked the look of the ruler but then decided to keep it simple. And I wanted to add numbers that are more three dimensional. Also I knew I wanted to make it in white with gray numbers, as gray and whites has lately become my favorite colors for home decorating. So here is our finished project:
What you need:
- One 1x8x8 wooden board
- Six house/mailbox numbers
- white paint (or any color you prefer)
- sander or sand paper
- Flush mount wall hanger. we used these
- wood filler (optional)
Steps:
- Have the fine folks at Lowes (or in my case, husband) cut the board down the length you want. We shortened ours to 6 feet long. So here is hoping he isn’t over seven feet tall!
- Sand the board and use wood filler to fill in any crackers or holes. If you want to leave your wood distressed looking then you can skip this step.
- Paint the board a color of your choice. We painted ours white with leftover paint from doing the ceiling in the nursery. Let it dry over night.
- Follow the instructions on the number packaging to attach the numbers to the board. Some take screws, or like me I used hot glue so that the numbers would be as flush as possible to the board. REMEMBER to place the numbers AFTER you decide where and how you will attach it to the wall. We decided to hang ours a few inches above the baseboard. So the bottom of our number “1” is where one foot starts, the bottom of “2” is where 2 feet starts, ect.
- Hang the growth chart on the wall using the flush wall mount.
- Enjoy!
I think the plan for now is to add Will and I’s measurements and then we will add the baby’s birth height once we bring him home and then re-measure him every six months (his birthday and half birthday). We hung our growth chart right in the living room coincidentally next to his toy box because his nursery has run out of room and wall space! Yikes! More photos of the nursery to follow soon!
xxoo Priscilla
