Skip to Content

diy rustic wooden ruler {tutorial}

Thanks for your visit! If you like what you see here, be sure to visit our FREE PRINTABLES section with over 100+ free printables for your home!

free printables | wall art | cheap wall art | home decor | wall prints | printable art | free prints | wall art ideas

Now, onto today’s tutorial….

There are so many times that I find myself online searching for inspiration and stumble upon an absolutely adorable nursery design or project made for little hands and imaginations.

Despite the fact that my hubby and I don’t have plans involving kids anytime soon, I am able to live vicariously through my friends who DO.

So when I came across the idea of an oversized rustic wooden wall ruler made to measure the height of little ones as they grow, I decided to go ahead and make it with the intention of gifting the finished product to my friend. I can’t wait to see her family use it as they measure the boys’ heights in the years to come.

Supplies:

1 inch x 6 feet piece of wood

light stain (save a trip to the store here!)

dark stain

clear water-based polyurethane

thick paint brush

old rag

thin paint brush

black acrylic paint

Instructions:

The first thing I needed to do was give my piece of lumber an aged, rustic finish. To do so, I started by brushing on a layer of the light colored stain (Minwax, “Golden Oak”) with a thick paint brush.

After wiping off the excess with an old rag, I used the thick paint brush again to brush a couple of quick strokes of the dark colored stain (Minwax, “Ebony”) across the wood in various sections.

This particular color was SUPER dark and only needed a tiny bit to get that rustic look. After wiping off the excess, I left the wood to dry overnight.

DIY Rustic Ruler

DIY Rustic Ruler

The next day, I took my thin paint brush and began to freehand marks every six inches and numbers every foot up the length of the board. I actually marked the first foot only 6 inches up from the bottom of the piece of wood.

This was to allow for the ruler to hang above the base board, which is typically about five inches high. The photo below of the ruler up on the wall may illustrate this concept better than my words do.

DIY Rustic Ruler

Once my marks and numbers were painted on and dry (I gave it a few hours), I used the thick paint brush again to add a layer of clear polyurethane to give it a nice glossy finish.

A few predrilled holes and some black finishing screws later, and this DIY Rustic Ruler is ready to mark the passage of time and inches.

DIY Rustic Ruler

DIY Rustic Ruler

DIY Rustic Ruler

Carrie Waller is a freelance writer and designer living in Lynchburg, Virginia. Her DIY blogging features for Burlap+Blue are available the second and fourth Thursdays of each month. For a real-time rehash of her home renovation projects and other DIY how-to’s, visit her blog at DreamGreenDIY.com.

Barbara Radley

Wednesday 16th of January 2019

Really like the idea. Think I’ll add some small photos slots and maybe inch marks on other side.

Karen

Tuesday 15th of January 2019

How wide is the board?

Megan @ Rappsody in Rooms

Thursday 25th of October 2012

Such a cute idea! I will have to keep that one on the back burner. I like that it is something you can bring from home to home. We started a measuring wall in one of our homes but 5 homes later...gone!

Beth @ BAndBBuildALife.com

Thursday 25th of October 2012

Oh thank you for sharing this - at such an opportune time! Though I don't plan on making an over-sized ruler any time soon, I DO have some shelving/hat rack/storage table plans in mind for our Living Room, and Bill and I are butting heads on finishes. He wanted to go all dark to go with our Ikea black brown pieces we already have, while I want to mix it up and layer in a few DIY pieces with a lighter finish. (worried the room will get too heavy with all that dark finish!) The staining technique you used marries the lighter base with a darker wood detailing - the perfect middle ground! THANK YOU for sharing (and for solving an argument! lol)

Carrie @DreamGreenDIY

Thursday 25th of October 2012

Awesome, Beth!! Happy to hear that you were inspired =)

burlap+blue

Thursday 25th of October 2012

So glad to help, Beth!! Definitely sounds like the staining technique is a good middle ground for you-best of luck! xoxo