Earn cash as you plan. Get a $20 gift card for every 200 points with The Knot Rewards
Chit Chat
knottie71e3e926f9f2b361
member
When do you wear your rings? (Also some advice please)
in Chit Chat
I'm recently engaged and my fiance gave me an absolutely stunning ring. He insured it but I'm still SO afraid I'm going to lose it or damage it. I also work at a preschool so I don't wear it to work (too many bodily fluids there!). I've never been a ring-wearer so it's not second-nature to me to put it on when I get home. He's always slightly offended when I'm not wearing it. I'm just so afraid I'm going to ruin this beautiful ring. I also clean a lot at home so I don't want those chemicals on it either. When do you wear your rings? What reasons do you choose not to wear it? How do I make him understand these things?
Re: When do you wear your rings? (Also some advice please)
FWIW, I work for a jeweler. I wear my rings whenever I leave the house. I actually don't wear them at home very often. H wears his everywhere except the shower.
I wasn't always a ring person, either. It becomes habit after a while. I forgot to put mine on the other day (one of those days where I was in a rush and overslept) and felt naked.
I get get my ring cleaned every 2-3 months and get all the claws checked at the same time. I’ve stopped worrying about it and just enjoy it. My H would be upset if I didn’t wear it. I love my rings and feel bare without them.
I get mine cleaned/checked every 6 months, where they make sure the prints are in good working order. I teach Phys-Ed, and I've never had an issue. I did catch it once on a cloth suitcase and must have bent a prong cos the diamond would spin in the socket thing. I took it off immediately and brought it in to be fixed.
Wear your ring!! I was worried too at first, as I don't wear jewelry, but I've never really had an issue, other than the cloth bag
The whole point of wedding/engagement rings is to wear them all the time. You'll get over the newness of it with time. It'll just be part of your hand and it won't seem like such a big deal to wear it.
I like the idea of putting it on a chain at work. And I know kids can be unpredictable with body fluids, but your school should supply you with PPE if you're expected to clean them up. The only time it should get on your ring is if the kid happened to barf directly onto your hands.
You can do a chain at work, or get a silicon ring (I have one for workouts) that I slip on and off, and that should remind you to put your ring back on.
I wouldn't put them on a chain if you work in a preschool. I have a toddler and he loves to pull on any necklace I wear. I deliberately wear only costume jewelry when I know I'm going to have a lot of time with my kids because I don't want my little guy to pull on a chain or strand of pearls and break it.
Wear the rings. Keep them on and just start to get used to them. DH used to spin his wedding ring like a top when we first got married. He wasn't used to wearing them for daily use and he'd fidget. It's been a decade now and I couldn't tell you the last time he took his off
To be fair, I was a ring person even before I got engaged. However, I keep mine on almost all the time. The only time I take it off is if I'm doing something where my hands might get really dirty and I won't be wearing gloves, ie mixing beef.
I'm actually much more afraid of taking my ring off, forgetting to put it back on, and losing it. @charlotte989875, I would never have thought of a silicone ring, what a great idea!
I'm guessing your FI would be more understanding if it was just work you weren't wearing the ring to. Maybe get into a habit of keeping it on, except when you are going to work? And, at home, take it off and put it right back on again after you are done cleaning.
It sounds like it's just a matter of getting into the habit/routine of wearing a ring. And it just takes time to get into a new routine.
The ONLY reason that I don't wear it to the gym anymore is because I actually broke my ring while I was working out. My ring is insured and they shipped it off and I got a brand new one 6 weeks later (same stones - new ring).
The insurance is there for a reason. Wear it and enjoy it.
She'll wear her engagement ring when she opts to wear other rings - dinner, event, etc.
I wear my engagement ring all the time except for when it's to be getting wet or could get lost {beach, pool, sleep, shower, etc} and often I don't wear either at home.
It's more personal preference tbh
Where I work right now, you can't wear rings, for a very very good reason, and people either wear their rings on a necklace or they don't bother with them at all. I don't think I'd bother with a necklace.
It's just jewelry. You're not obligated to wear it every day forever because your partner bought it for you. Your comfort comes first.
H wears his every day, but won't wear it to sleep or in the shower.
Oh btw, I was mostly exaggerating. Of course, we have gloves at work. But I only wear them when I'm helping with toileting/changing diapers or doing some first-aid. But I just don't want to wash my ring everyday from kid germs. They grab my hands after they've used their hands as a tissue, one kid actually ran out of the bathroom to show me the toilet paper he used because he wanted to show me how well he did wiping. We're also always painting, doing playdoh, hot gluing...I love them all, but it's a messy job.
As far as the activities that you do, how often are you doing something where the activity can get stuck in the ring? I rarely kneed dough or get my hand immersed in something dirty but if I did I'd take it off just to avoid what got stuck in it.
This could be a reason to think about a more simple wedding band. You can't get modeling clay stuck in a simple band.
Think of how dirty your cell phone is, yet you probably use it every day.
I take my rings off to shower and swim. Also, I bought a fake diamond wedding band for traveling.
You get to decide what you put on your body. Your fiance(e) gets to deal with it.
But, you're more worried about germs and whatnot. If I were you, I'd be worried about scratching a child, if your setting sticks out from your hand quite a bit like mine does. Putting a ring on a necklace only works when you don't have toddlers and babies who like to grab stuff.
If you think wearing your engagement ring at work is a hazard, don't wear it. Tell your fiance why and assure him you adore the ring, you want to protect it, and it's purely a small-children-thing why you aren't comfortable wearing it. Wear it at home, wear it out and about, etc. If you don't want to wear it while cleaning, don't. Depending on the metal, it may be better you don't, lest you have to spend more time on the upkeep. I've seen some women's rings get really dingy looking if they don't get them professionally cleaned.
FWIW I wear my engagement ring to work and when I'm out and about, but I take all my jewelry, including engagement and wedding ring, off at home. DH also takes his wedding ring off at home. They go in a ring dish by the bed. I had a baby a few months ago and stopped wearing both rings completely for awhile there, and just put my plain wedding band on when I was going out. I do worry about scratching my baby (so far so good though haha).
As far as loosing it, all you can do is ensure it's properly sized, and have a designated place to keep it if you are going to be leaving it off at times. A quality ring will stand up just fine to regular hand-washing and sanitizer too, so don't worry about that part.
His job is fine, so he can wear it to work but anything he does that could be dangerous, that ring comes off.
It's the kind of ring that if something happens, you can't cut the ring you have to take the finger.
I agree with @thisismynickname2 with the disagreeing on "just because it's insured, wear it"
If you're going to wear it, but aware of what you're doing.
Of course people should be careful with the most expensive thing they wear. That's obvious. People are just saying "don't be scared to wear your wedding/engagement ring for normal life/benign things."