Let’s face it; we’ve all gone to bed with jewelry on our bodies. Sometimes it simply occurs, and you don’t even realize you need to take off your jewelry because you’re so used to it – and it seems like it’s part of you.
With that said, is it acceptable to wear jewelry to bed? What about your perfectly fitting wedding or engagement ring, for example? A diamond engagement ring is often the first (and most costly) piece of fine jewelry that many of us will possess, much alone wear daily.
But after the glitter of the proposal fades, you may discover you have no idea how to keep your ring secure and at its best.
Aside from regular cleanings, good diamond ring maintenance also includes removing your engagement ring when performing certain daily duties. You probably wondered at least once: “Should I take off my rings at night?”
We’re here to answer all of these questions and more. So, set aside a few minutes – and read the entire thing!
Should I Take Off My Rings At Night?
We get it – you want to show off your engagement ring every hour of every day. But please don’t do it for the sake of your ring. There are a variety of reasons why you’d wish to place your ring on your nightstand instead.
Taking off your engagement ring is probably a good idea if you’re a major tosser and turner between the sheets. For one, your ring might get stuck in your hair or sheets while you’re sleeping, loosening the setting.
It’s also always possible that it’ll snag on your mattress, damaging not just your bedding but also one of your ring’s prongs.
Also, sleeping on your hands and placing your body weight on them might create strain on the ring and cause it to change its form – perhaps resulting in accent stone loss.
Related Read: What Is Diamond Accent? Everything You Need To Know
Furthermore, big center stones or stones with edges – such as square or elongated cuts – might scratch you or your partner as you sleep.
If your ring contains stones on the softer side of the Mohs scale – making them more brittle – or if you endure discomfort from nightly swelling and the associated ring tension, it may be good to temporarily part with it your oh-so-shiny engagement ring while sleeping.
What Do Dermatologists Say?
According to dermatologists and skin experts, wearing jewelry all the time isn’t a problem as long as you keep it clean and the materials don’t hurt your skin.
Constantly wearing jewelry might potentially harm the actual piece of jewelry. Still, there are no substantial health dangers associated with wearing jewelry all day, including sleeping and showering.
If you have a sensitivity to your jewelry or are allergic to metal parts, you might experience some skin-related problems. In such instances, prolonged contact can result in symptoms such as itchy, dry, and irritated skin and flaky or scaly skin.
There’s a chance you’ll get a rash or blisters, too.
Furthermore, if the ring is not composed of solid gold or silver, it could create an allergic response in some people. Nickel, a metal often added to gold and silver, might be highly irritating to the skin.
See, when this type of jewelry tarnishes, it gets black, and it will also make your skin black, which isn’t such a lovely addition to your daily outfit.
Sweat and the combination of some medications, jewelry, and skin can induce a reaction between the jewelry and the skin. Therefore, wearing jewelry while working out might be risky – depending on what it’s made of, of course.
So, how can you tell whether you’re allergic to a specific metal?
A dermatologist can use a patch test to determine if you are allergic to nickel, copper, and other metals other than gold, silver, or platinum, which can cause dermatitis.
Unless your diamond-embedded pieces of jewelry are of exceptional grade, it’s preferable to remove them before entering the shower.
Costume or “fashion” jewelry made of sterling silver or nickel plating has a propensity for tarnishing – which can darken your skin. That’s why it isn’t such a good idea to wear less expensive jewelry to the shower – or sleep with it, for that matter.
According to dermatologists, the biggest threat to your skin isn’t the metal itself – but the bacteria, dirt, and grime that builds up on top of your ring.
On that note, you should be cleaning your ring regularly with warm water, a gentle cleanser, and a toothbrush.
Learn More: Diamond Care: How To Take Care Of Your Diamonds
Other Occasions When You Should Remove Your Ring
Believe it or not, rings, like automobiles, require routine maintenance and inspection. Prongs can wear out, stones can loosen, shanks can break – and a variety of other issues will need to be addressed with time.
Although this repair is unavoidable, you can still influence how soon and how often your ring requires maintenance by taking good care of it.
Since your wedding band and engagement rings are both symbolically and literally important to you – figuratively because of their deeper significance and literally because they are made of sensitive precious metals and stones – they acquire special care.
That’s why you should avoid wearing this pricey jewelry in circumstances where you could easily lose or damage it.
So, we’re left with an intriguing question – when should you take off your rings? We’ve put together a list of situations in which you should always take off your rings:
Before Gym Or Any Kind Of Exercise
Although bridal sets are correctly proportioned to fit securely on your ring finger, this does not guarantee that the rings will not slip off at some point. Any ring may get loosened with enough moisture.
When paired with a lot of movement, your valuable ring may fall off – and workouts, hikes, athletics, and dancing are all ideal places for this disaster to occur.
Plus, these activities are often carried out in huge public spaces or out in nature – locations where retracing your steps to retrieve your misplaced ring would be practically impossible!
Straight, circular engagement rings, for example, are far more prone to fall off during sweaty sports. When your arms swing about, thin bands offer less surface area to hang onto your finger, and the heavier head provides a stronger gravitational pull.
Due to the gentle flexibility of gold and platinum, the delicate band might easily bend and dent during weight lifting or rock climbing. When a band’s structural integrity is compromised, the prongs may flex – allowing diamonds to become loose and fall out.
As a result, we recommend leaving your ring at home for these high-intensity activities. It is advisable to preserve these priceless love emblems safe and secure. After all, once you’ve returned and bathed, it’ll be ready to put back on.
Related Read: What Causes Diamonds To Fall Out Of Rings?
Before Swimming Or Any Water-Based Activities
First off, cold water shrinks your finger, making it much simpler for your wet, slippery ring to slide off. Second, a gleaming ring might be seen on hard, dry surfaces – but in the glittering waters of lakes, rivers, and oceans, it will blend in and vanish forever.
Your ring might even be sucked down a drain if you lose it in a pool. And you’re much less likely to find the center stone if it falls off in such a scenario, too.
Finally, both chlorine and saltwater can tarnish and discolor your ring’s jewels and metal. To be clear, the metals in the jewelry corrode due to the chlorine present in the water.
One bottle of bleach could disintegrate a 10k, 14k, or 18k gold ring in a matter of days; we don’t suggest trying this at home.
So, follow our advice and just enjoy the sun without the added glitz and glam on your ring finger – no swimming, no hot tub, and if you can, restrict wearing it in the shower, too.
If you truly want a beautiful engagement ring shot from one of these swimming sites, do your Instagram photoshoot first, then carefully place your jewels back in a padded jewelry box.
Before Messy Activities Or Cleaning
Messy activities, such as cleaning dishes, automobiles, or pets, are also risky. It’s not a good idea to clean while wearing an engagement ring since the sand, dirt, and grime will likely get trapped between the prongs and beneath the diamonds.
Cleaning this gunk out of an engagement ring or wedding band takes a long time due to the delicate nature of the jewelry.
Moreover, the use of bleach in cleaning goods can discolor and degrade gold alloy. It’s also worth noting that if you don’t wear protective gloves, the harsh chemicals might get lodged beneath your ring and irritate your finger.
Some people misdiagnose this as a metal allergy when there is a simple fix – cleaning your rings after cleaning.
And if you believe wearing gloves would protect your jewelry from damage, think again: Gloves are frequently tight and composed of materials that cling to prongs and diamonds and pull on them. Plus, wearing a large diamond ring inside a glove can be uncomfortable.
Before Applying Beauty Products
Self-priming is almost as bad for your rings as cleaning your house or yard. You’re putting your ring in danger, whether you’re getting ready for bed with cleansers and moisturizers or getting prepared for a night out with hair products and scents.
These cosmetics include chemicals that, while beneficial to our hair and skin, will tarnish and corrode all of our fine jewelry, not just engagement rings.
These compounds get lodged in the nooks and crannies of rings, dulling the sparkle of the diamond and clouding the shine of the metal.
Imagine how depressing a shimmery engagement diamond ring would seem if you smeared it with lotion and hairspray. It would lose nearly all of its dazzling sparkliness – at least until you found the time and the right supplies to clean it correctly.
Even soaps may damage your ring, so take it off while bathing. That said, you can leave it on when washing your hands – unless you’re using exfoliating hand soap.
However, while getting dressed, remember to put the ring somewhere secure: Many have made the terrible mistake of putting their ring on the sink and then losing it down the drain – never to be seen again.
Before Any Outdoor Activities
Much like with water environments, you’re unlikely to locate it if you lose it in the woods.
We also don’t advocate wearing your ring when participating in outdoor activities since you risk injuring your hand, which might cause swelling and prohibit you from removing it. That can, in turn, culminate in having to have your ring cut off.
The same goes for gardening – dirt and gems don’t mix well.
Before Traveling
This one isn’t required, but you should be aware that traveling is the most common cause of jewelry loss. Rings vanish from hotels, are forgotten in hotel safes, fall off in the water – again, cautious of wet hands – are misplaced in baggage, and the list goes on.
Before Food Preparation Or Cooking
Remove your ring before touching any raw or ground meat. That should go without saying – but it’s easy to forget. You don’t want your dazzling emblem of eternal love to become infested with bacteria. When it comes to your ring and working in the kitchen, hygiene is the new glitz.
Also, precious rings and sticky foods like dough or syrups don’t mix well: Residue can become lodged in crevices and even injure valuable stones, much like it can in gardening.
Before Using Any Tools Or Equipment
We already wrote about diamonds’ worst enemies in our previous articles – hammers and other sturdy objects. Just one wrong hit is quite enough to shatter your precious stone into pieces.
Also, home remodeling projects are one of those when-not-to-wear-your-engagement-ring situations. The last thing you want is to give your ring an unintentional makeover with dots of paint.
Moreover, it’s best to remove your ring or replace it with something non-conductive if you work in a profession that requires working with your hands or handling machineries, such as construction, carpentry, or electrical work.
Before Putting On A Hand Sanitizer
Hand sanitizer might harm your engagement ring over time.
Things like hand sanitizer – and other cleaning products like bleach, rubbing alcohol, and antibacterial soaps – contain harsh chemicals. And harsh chemicals will discolor your metal setting and reduce the brilliance of your stone over time.
Worst of all? Hand sanitizer can also loosen the prongs on your ring setting, causing your stone to come out if not appropriately secured.
That’s not to imply you shouldn’t use hand sanitizer at all. Instead, remove your rings while using them, and put them back on after your hands have dried.
When You’re Pregnant
Natural weight changes and swelling might influence how well your ring fits – but this doesn’t imply you should get it resized right away.
If your ring becomes too tight for comfort when you’re pregnant, we recommend wearing it as a necklace – or finding out another alternative you’ll be satisfied with—until your body adjusts to its new normal.
Put off the resizing until after the delivery – and see if there’s still a need for it.
Related Read: How Much Does It Cost To Insure A Diamond Ring?
When Can You Wear Your Rings Then?
Leave your engagement ring on if you know it won’t be subjected to any harsh chemicals or undue pressure. Daily activities would not ruin your wedding jewelry – so, go ahead and enjoy it.
In fact, you may wear it, flaunt it, and bask in its gleaming splendor for the majority of your waking hours!
Your wedding set, for example, is ideal for wearing to work, driving, going out to dine or out on the town, shopping, hanging out with friends – or relaxing on the sofa with your significant other.
You must remove your engagement ring at the appropriate times to avoid having to clean it afterward or, even worse, replace it.
Treat the rings with the delicacy and care that the love that they represent deserves so they can endure a lifetime.
Have Your Rings Checked Every Now And Then
Having your ring examined every six months can prevent losing treasured stones and having to pay for more expensive repairs later on.
The jeweler will clean your ring in addition to inspecting it under a microscope to restore its luster and beauty. Having your jewelry examined regularly saves you money and prevents terrible loss or damage 99.9% of the time.
How To Store Your Ring?
What do you do with your priceless ring when you’re not wearing it?
Really, any safe area will suffice. The essential thing is that you choose a secure storage location and just leave it there.
And remember: No matter how frequently you take your ring off, it’s difficult to keep it looking new without regular care. Buildup obstructs light interactions with the stone, so clean it gently every few weeks to preserve it at its best.
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