Your engagement ring is one of the most important rings you’ll ever wear, but does that mean that you should wear your ring every hour of every day? The simple answer is…no.
We know you LOVE your engagement ring. And like many things we love, that means you want to spend all your time with it. However, the nature of engagement ring design means it’s exposed to many potential dangers that wedding bands are not.
1. Don’t Wear your Engagement Ring to the Gym:
To be honest,
any form of exercise is a no-no for engagement rings, whether it’s on the treadmill or during your yoga class. Basically, all that resistance that makes your body harder and stronger cannot be withstood by precious metals or gemstones (which can break when struck or impacted). Aside from the obvious potential for damage from knocks, there’s the possibility of you micro-changing the shape of your engagement ring as you grip/push/pull…eventually, this may lead to stones loosening enough that you won’t realize they’re gone until it’s too late.
Additionally, sweat contains both salt and oils, both of which cause dirt to build up. Not only is that build-up on your engagement ring unsightly, but it can expand and contract, causing gems to loosen. Your engagement ring is not a sporting accessory. It’s not your earbuds or knee support – it’s your engagement ring... so take it off!
2. Don’t Wear your Engagement Ring While Cleaning the house:
Again, knocks on worktops or other hard surfaces are a real issue when cleaning, but this risk almost pales in comparison to the damage common cleaning chemicals will do. Bleach and ammonia, for example, are two of a few chemicals that our skin can withstand, but actually
eats away gold.
Many solvents can permanently damage both the metal and the stones. Even if you wear gloves, still take the ring off, because those gloves still won’t protect your engagement ring from blows.
3. Don’t Wear Your Engagement Ring While in the Water:
There are two ways that swimming affects the safety of your engagement ring. One is the naturally lubricant nature of water–your ring can slip off in a lake, ocean, river, or pool…with little chance of being found. The other concern with your engagement ring while swimming is chemical: chlorine reacts with gold, and eats it away—swimming pools, hot tubs, and jacuzzis have very high chlorine contents, which actually wears away your precious metal (that’s why jewelry looks so clean when you get out of the pool—you really wore away some of the metal, thus hiding scratches!).
Salt water is also a no no. Seawater will recrystallize on the surfaces of your engagement ring and create build-up that can get between the stones and their settings... causing gems to loosen over time!
4. Don’t Wear your Engagement Ring During your Beauty Regimen:
Soap, creams, gels, pastes, face-packs, shampoos, perfumes, and other beauty products are the slow-burner of ring damage. Every time you apply any kind of product to any part of your body, some of it will end up on and in your engagement ring. Over a period of time, this buildup does two things. Firstly, it attracts as much dirt, grease and grime as it can; and secondly, it gets further and further into the nooks and crannies of your ring and can eventually cause not just accelerated physical deterioration, but also the loosening of the stones due to the increased pressure from beneath as it gets packed tighter and tighter. And while the high chlorine content of a pool or hot tub will eat away at your engagement ring metal quickly, frequent exposure at a lower chlorine level (think: showering) eventually causes the same problem.
5. Don’t Wear your Engagement Ring While Cooking or Baking:
Apart from our beauty regimen, cooking is the next biggest contributor to detritus (loose material, debris) attaching itself to your engagement ring. Almost everything we touch when preparing a meal will make our hands sticky, smelly, and oily, which will inherently also adhere to your engagement ring. Baking is just about the worst thing to be doing whilst wearing your engagement ring, as it involves the two worst ingredients imaginable: fat and flour. They are literally a recipe for disaster when it comes to your wedding ring. As kitchens are notoriously cluttered spaces with plenty of places for a ring to get lost, our recommendation is to store your ring in a known, safe place while you are cooking (like your ring box!)
6. Don’t Wear your Engagement Ring When you’re Sick:
When you’re sick, your body goes through some crazy things, often ones that aren’t immediately obvious. Weight loss, dehydration, localized swelling, and many more secondary symptoms that can cause your ring to loosen or tighten on your finger. If you do get sick with something that’s likely to last more than a day or two, just take your engagement ring off. Taking all of your jewelry off is actually a good idea. Why not put everything, including your engagement ring, in your favorite jewelry cleaner to brighten up for when you’re recovered?
7. Don’t Wear your Engagement Ring to Bed:
Apart from the obvious snagging threat from pajamas, bedclothes, hair or even a partner, the pressure of your body weight can cause the band to become misshapen if you tend to lie on your hands and this could lead to stones popping out. Hair has the strength to pull back a prong, which in turn, can cause your stones to loosen and fall out. There is an argument that, if you’re wearing it, you can’t lose it, but that doesn’t mean you should just accept the risk of damage. It’s what your nightstand was made for.
We know you want to wear your engagement ring all the time… but why risk damaging your engagement ring now that you know how to keep it safe? Following these seven guidelines will help ensure the longevity of one of your most treasured possessions… your engagement ring!
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Did you know? Alara Jewelry offers free ring cleanings regardless of where your ring was purchased! In addition to cleaning your rings, we will also inspect your ring for any maintenance needs (retipping, stone tightening, rhodium, etc). So swing on in, and we'll take a peek at how your ring is doing! You can also sign up for Free Jewelry Cleaning Reminders here.
Thank you for all the wonderful tips about the engagement ring! I had no idea! I will be more careful with it from now on! Thank you
Don’t wear your engagement ring hunting, fishing or skiing.
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