The DIY Project That Measures Your Kids' Heights Without Damaging The Door Frame

Drawing lines on the wall above kids' heads has been a popular way for parents to track their children's height progress. For many, the door frame will do the trick, but the result can ruin the look of a perfectly-decorated space while also damaging any drywall and paint in the process. Further, in the event of a move, the parents would have to paint over the keepsake. Thankfully, there's a DIY project that will ensure your walls stay unmarked. The answer? A growth chart ruler, which you could easily DIY and customize. The result? You'll never have to worry about another damaged door frame again.

Engaging with your children via a growth chart, learning games, and other methods allows them to feel a sense of autonomy at a young age. When we opt for a kid-friendly couch or find a way to help our child keep their bedroom clutter-free, we're setting an example of independence, self-sufficiency, and organization that's essential for brain development. With this inexpensive project, you're able to engage your children with their growth while giving them the freedom to be creative. To make matters even better, the piece can easily be removed from the wall, which wouldn't be the case if you marked your children's heights directly on the door frame. If you ever move in the future, the ruler can be kept as a keepsake or continued to be used for years to come.

The benefit of this DIY growth chart is that you can give it a chic look, so it could be hung in the living room as a decorative piece. To create one, start by purchasing a large wooden ruler, such as the Kids Growth Chart Stick from Home Depot for under $30. To personalize this piece, cover it with the wood stain of your choice and allow it to dry completely. Then, decide where to hang it and use a measuring tape to ensure it's hung at the right height (for instance, the 6 foot mark needs to truly be 6 feet tall). However, perhaps you'd rather allow your children's personalities to show through this decorative piece, in which case you can give your kids the tools to make it their own. With markers, glitter, paint, stickers, and other accessories, your children could decorate the chart however they desire. 

To mark your children's growth progress, you'll need either a marker or paint in a dark color. When measuring, ask each child to stand tall with the back of their heels pressed against the wall, then draw a line above their head to mark their height. Further, you could also include their name, the date, or anything else you want to remember. On the other hand, if you don't want to use a line to mark your children's heights, you could use stickers, photographs, or any other decorative items instead. 

If staining a wooden growth chart isn't your style, there are a couple other DIY options you could try, including using an old bedsheet. To complete this project, start by folding the sheet multiple times to create a skinny rectangle before attaching it to the wall vertically with nails or an adhesive on both the top and bottom. Then, using a ruler and a marker or paint, create approximately 5 to 6 feet of inch-sized measurements and allow your children to personalize the piece, if desired. Another alternative is creating a growth chart with just a blank wooden plank. The benefit of a plank over a sheet is that you can create small notches for the measurements instead of simply drawing or painting them on.

Additionally, pre-made growth charts are a great way to track your children's heights without having to stain or measure anything. For instance, you could purchase The Lakeside Collection's Sentiment Ruler Growth Chart (under $17) or Morxy's Unisex Canvas Growth Chart (under $25). Growth charts can also be personalized beyond traditional rulers, such as TAINGAVN's Loved Beyond Measure Growth Chart ($40). This piece has many different themes like farm animals or under the sea and lists your child's name and birthday at the top. Because of this, buying one for each child would be ideal, and you could keep them in each of their bedrooms as a keepsake.