Ring care

Congratulations on your engagement! Like you said, you will get a wide range of answers but It’s COMPLETELY personal preference. I only wear my rings during the day, and do not sleep in them (that is true for all my jewelry). I take them off when I cook, work out, and run. I have friends who don’t take them off for any reason, ever, which I can’t imagine, Lol.

When I take them off, I have a ring holder and that is the only place they go so that I don’t absentmindedly leave them anywhere else. Figure out what is most comfortable with you and have a single designated spot for when you do take it off.

View Quoted Comment Thank you for commenting! Also, love your dog- cutie patootie!!!

I also have a ring holder (on my night stand), and I’ve gotten into the habit of always taking my ring off when I get home (so it’s not on when I’m cleaning, exercising, showering, sleeping, getting dressed, cooking, etc). I do put it back on if we have guests over though.

Congratulations on your engagement!
I am the same as PP. I wear mine when I go out and have guests over but put it in my ring holder when I workout, sleep, shower, clean, etc. I wear a silicone band all other times.

I worked for a few jewelry manufacturers for almost a decade. I always take my rings off to sleep, shower, wash dishes, clean, work out. I also don't wear my set when I go to theme parks or do anything really vigorous. I have a ring dish by each sink so I have a safe place to keep my rings and a jewelry box for night time so the cats aren't able to steal them lol. Of course it is entirely up to you, but I would recommend taking them off while sleeping/showering.

A jeweler will tell you you should remove your ring when exercising, sleeping, showering, swimming, washing your hands, prepping food, gardening, cleaning, working with tools or chemicals (including skin care products and sunscreen), or otherwise engaging with your hands in ways that might damage your ring. I for example, hate walking my dog with my e-ring on because I feel like when he pulls on the leash it can catch on my stone.

I have a silicone ring I wear 98% of the time, and I feel comfortable wearing it for all of these activities (I usually remove it for showering and sleep though). I'm a pretty active person and have a hands on job, so I'd need to remove my rose gold rings several times a day most days, and with Covid I'm washing my hands constantly, so far less worried about what soap and hand sanitizer do to my $30 silicone band vs having to be careful with my metal rings. Wearing your ring all the time will cause it to wear faster and wearing it less, particularly removing it for damaging activities, will extend the life of your ring. Additionally, metal rings can get caught and result in finger entrapment, de-gloving, or other damage while working with machinery or participating in certain sports, so a silicone ring (or no ring) for certain activities is not only safer for your wedding band, but safer for your finger as well.

I know many people (mostly men) who have worn their wedding bands for decades, never having removed it since their wedding day. The rings have thinned over time but because men's rings are typically flat with no stones and prongs to rip off or get caught on things, and the bands themselves much wider and thicker than typical women's rings, they can withstand more wear and tear before experiencing catastrophic damage. One of my coworkers is a physical therapist (also a fitness instructor) and says he has older female clients come in all the time with their wedding bands so worn and thin they look like they could snap at any time.

View Quoted Comment My fiancé does have insurance on it at least, but I’m not a fan of how silicone looks. For me it would be the original ring or none at all haha! Thanks for your advice though

TBH, I have gotten out of the habit of wearing mine. I used to wear it every day, but once the pandemic hit I was washing my hands at work 50+ times per day, and I was worried I would accidentally leave the ring on a sink. Prior to that though, I only wore it to work and when we went out in the evenings. I always removed it for showers, gardening, working out, etc. and always before bed. Our jeweler told me sleeping in it could loosen prongs and (depending how you sleep and the construction of your ring) could warp or bend the ring.

View Quoted Comment

You can always get a fake ring if not wearing a ring feels wrong to you, but you are worried about damaging your real ring.

I rarely wear jewelry and pre-engagement never wore rings, so wasn't really sure what my size was. My engagement ring ended up being too big and needing to be resized, but I was really worried about having it sized incorrectly. So I got measured at a few different jewelers and then bought two inexpensive rings off Etsy in the sizes I was debating between, and wore them each for a bit to figure out which size worked best for me before sending my engagement ring in to be resized. The correct size replica ring is now a good "stand in" for when I want something fancier than silicone and am not worried about a metal ring catching and injuring my finger, but am wary of damaging or losing my real engagement ring.

I work as an athletic director, so silicone goes fine with athleisure wear and works for me most of the time, but having a $30 rose gold plated ring with low profile CZ stones still feels a bit nicer and looks more elegant without the risk of wearing a higher profile, more expensive ring during times where I'm not 100% confident I can keep it safe.

I basically only wear my rings when I leave the house - they come off and get placed in a ring dish next to the kitchen sink when I start making dinner and don't go back on until I leave for work the next morning. I definitely don't wear them when I sleep - my fingers swell a bit overnight, so they become really uncomfortable and hard to remove.

I really only wear mine when I'm leaving the house. If we're just hanging out at home it's normally off and when I get home from work and start dinner or wash my hands it comes off and stays off. I also take it off at work whenever I wash my hands or if I put lotion on. I am really bad at just taking it off wherever and then forgetting about it, so I actually have 3 separate ring holders. One is in our kitchen by the sink, one is near a spot where I usually nap on weekends because I don't sleep with it on, and one is on our bathroom counter. That way I can't lose it as easily because it's always in one of those three.

I have a little ceramic hippo by my sink where I put my rings when I'm doing dishes, and I take them off when I shower. I was taking them off when washing my hands, but it's happening way too often these days, so I've been keeping them on for hand washing.

I personally take mine off before I take a shower in the evening and don't put it back on until I've finished my full morning routine. When it's not on my hand, it is ALWAYS back in its box with the lid closed, which lives unceremoniously next to my deodorant and work badge (so I never forget those three things 😂). I also take it off when I'm cooking something that involves my hands (meatballs, bread dough, cookies that need rolled, etc) or if I'm going to put on hand sanitizer. I don't take it off to wash my hands because I will 100% drop it down a drain one day if I do.

I'm like you, I want to wear it as much as possible - and honestly my hand has started feeling naked without it on!

I did buy a jar of ring cleaner on Amazon, and I clean my ring with it every other week, or whenever I remember, which helps combat the soap and other buildup.

My wedding band is a plain white gold band because I know I will really only wear my engagement ring on dressy occasions, and a plain band has no risk of getting snagged, losing stones, etc. I won't worry about getting it wet or dirty or anything. I think everyone has to do what works for their lifestyle!

At first I was terrified to wear it doing anything, but also terrified I would lose it. I have several silicone rings to wear while working out and once I start work back again (as a healthcare professional) I will likely wear it at work.

After I got my ring resized I felt more comfortable wearing it to sleep and showering. Part of this was also my mom, who told me she basically never takes hers off.

I have also heard of these ring bandits. Seems like a way for you to keep it secure if you feel you need to take off your ring.

I have a ring holder in my kitchen that I put my ring on when I'm not wearing it. I wear mine all the time except when I am cutting up food, cleaning, or showering -- I HATE the feeling of my ring moving around when my hands are wet. I don't like not having on something, though, so when I go to the gym or on a run, I wear a silicone band. I've forgotten to switch to the silicone before a few long runs, and after 5 or 6 miles my fingers swell so badly that I can't get my normal ring off.

Congratulations on your engagement! I take my ring off before putting on lotion, when doing dishes, showering and sleeping. I have a ring dish on my dresser where it goes every night. I recently received another ring dish as a gift and that will be going by the kitchen sink. I do keep my ring on while washing my hands, but if you use hand sanitizer and have a white gold ring, you should definitely take your ring off first. From what I’ve read & viewed online, it can cause the rhodium coating on white gold jewelry to wear away faster. It also leaves your ring looking dull until it’s cleaned, at least in my experience. Luckily, I learned that info about a month after getting engaged, so it wasn’t a big deal. Also, to clean my ring, I put warm water in a small cup with a bit of dish soap. Leave it in there for 10-20 minutes, and then gently brush the stone with a soft bristled toothbrush. Just a helpful tip if you need it. . Lastly, I heard that sleeping with your ring on can weaken the prongs over time. I hope this helps!