A big thing I hear about wearing wedding bands is getting used to them. Most of us engaged gals get used to wearing a ring on that finger (not all, though, right?), so when it comes to adding another ring to the finger it’s no big deal.
Then again, I take my ring off when I get home, when I shower and when I sleep. There are a couple of reasons why I do this: when I get home I change into my comfies, which means no sharp prongs to poke the dog. 
When I shower, I worry about my ring getting loose and falling and cracking. I’m paranoid. When I sleep, I’m a thrasher who sleeps with her left hand under her face causing discomfort to all who come in contact with her hand. Also, during sleep my hand swells and I’m left with a puffy finger around something that resembles a ring. Mr. Kiwi bought me a fancy jewelry box for this very reason- to stow my pricey jewelry while I sleep.
When I get my wedding band, I plan to wear both together, making 4mm of ring on my finger. I assume I’ll wear the band always, since it won’t be diamond studded and I won’t have to worry about harming it. Then again, I had heard certain waters (pools because of chlorine) can damage the strength of gold. Not quite sure if it’s true or not. 
How about you? Do you do everything with your rings on? If so or not, why?
The only time I take my ring off is when I’m making meatballs. I use my hands to mix up my meat, and the idea that my ring is trapping all sorts of raw meat bacteria really freaks me out. Other than that, I always keep it on. We have a good insurance plan (actually double…one from the shop and one through our regular insurance due to FFIL being a vice president of a major insurance comp.) so I know if it ever gets chipped or cracked or even lost, it’ll be ok.
I take my engagement ring off when I sleep, swim, shower, cook messy food, but I leave my wedding ring on ALWAYS. That has taken quite a bit of adjustment b/c I really want to protect it but at the same time, I want to just have a ring I can always have on and not just wear as an accessory when I feel like it. If that makes any sense? And my wedding band does have diamonds on it too, which is a little icky, but I try to wash deep in those crevices often so I think it’s okay. 
Me too. I take mine off when I’m cleaning/cooking and when I go to sleep - I have the same issue with the fingers swelling.
I don’t wear my engagement ring for hanging around at home. I put it on if I’m going out: to work, to shop, to visit friends. Not to run or go to the gym. It’s a vintage ring, and it’s possible it could be damaged. My wedding band, however, is a plain platinum band, and I haven’t taken it off since the honeymoon. (I wanted to look at the inscription.) I thought it might bother me, as I’m someone who normally takes off all my jewelery when I get home, but…it doesn’t. And I don’t have to worry about stones getting dirty or anything. I like having my ring on all the time, it’s part of me now. And, BTW, my husband only takes his off for weightlifting. I’m OK with that, I love his his big muscles!
I also take it off when I take a shower, sleep, and clean…..
I take it off a lot too. And this is after my mom made my fi have me wear a “practice ring” for 6 months before buying me a real ring. She had a traumatic experience with me in high school, when I begged for the MOST expensive high school ring (I know, why?). She finally gave in and I only wore it for one day before deciding it was really pokey and uncomfortable and never wore it again.
But that’s mostly because I come home on public transportation, so when I get home, I take off my watch and ring and wash my hands thoroughly. Sometimes I put the ring back on then, but generally not.
For the first week I only took it off to shower, cook, or lift weights (I would take it off to clean, but I rarely clean ). Then one morning my FI woke up to find two gashes down his arm. The distance between the two cuts was exactly the same width as the distance between two prongs on my ring. So i’ve stopped wearing it to bed.
I’m not married yet but I take off my e-ring for showers, washing my hands and messy cooking/baking like making meatballs or kneading dough by hand. To the horror of nearly everyone who knows this about me, I plan to do the same with my wedding band. I can’t help it, I have a mild case of OCD and I absolutely cannot TOLERATE the feeling of wetness on my finger underneath the ring if I leave it on when I wash my hands. I have to take it off to dry my hands off completely. I am afraid of it slipping off and down the drain in the shower too. Insurance be damned - I don’t care if it can be replaced, I want the original forever.
I don’t take mine off for fear I will lose it and I LOSE EVERYTHING. I even work out with it.
The only time I take it off is in pool when I’m swimming, and only because it feels loose I worry that one stroke it will slide off into the great beyond of the deep end! 
I take my ring off when i cook, wash dishes, shower and go to sleep. I especially hate how my skin under my ring has that moisty feeling after washing my hands so I scoot my ring up and down my finger and wipe my finger dry.
Heh, Mary I’m glad I’m not the only one.
For me, it’s pretty much put-it-on when I’m leaving the house, take-it-off when I get home (to cook, shower, sleep, etc.) But I wear it out everywhere - errands, lifting weights, etc. I haven’t been in the ocean since I’ve gotten engaged (which means I need a tan) so I’m not sure what I’ll do then.
ditto the meatballs and dough!
My dad got me a ring for my 16th birthday, and I haven’t taken it off in 5 years. I’m afraid that I’ll mess up my e-ring when I get it cause I’m so used to having a ring on 24/7
I definitely take it off when doing anything messy that could get stuck in the prongs (stuffing a turkey, changing a diaper. ew.) or that could cause accelerated patina.
I take my ering off when i shower, clean, sleep, cook etc… I have this horrible feeling i’ll bash it into something and break it. I always run my hands into things, ive got the bruises to show it!
My wedding band stays on unless I’m cooking something that involves handling a lot of raw meat. Like someone else mentioned, i too freak out about the idea of bits of chicken bacteria lodging themselves in between the stones and rotting away!
i take mine off as soon as i get home. i’m prone to taking it off and leaving it by the sink or wherever and i forget! that would be a bad habit. so it goes in my jewelry box as soon put my purse down. funny thing…i never forget to put it back on even if i’m going out for a quick errand! hehe
Anytime I touch fish or raw meat or clean with really harsh chemicals I take my rings off. I also take them off when I put moisturizer on in the morning. Otherwise they are always on. Like others, our insurance would cover the loss, but I would be heartsick if I ever lost either ring.
My Fi won’t let me take it my ering! He jokes we won’t be engaged anymore! I only take it off when I’m getting my hands really dirty-playing with clay, putting on a mud mask, or making hamburger patties.
The only time I take off my ring is when I am putting on lotion after I shower. I wear it in the shower, in the laboratory, to bed, while cooking, etc. I guess my take on it is that my fiance didn’t spend all that money for a ring to sit in a jewelery box. Plus, we have a great insurance policy for it’s actual value (my fiance got a great deal because it is his family jeweler) so if something happened to it, the ring would be replaced with something even nicer!
I take my engagement ring off (and plan to do this when I have my wedding ring) as soon as I get home. Part of the reason is the following: My jeweler said one of the WORST things for a diamond ring is….the shower! With all that shampoo, conditioner, soap, etc, your ring will not *sing* the way it did when you first put it on your hand within days if you wear it in the shower, putting on lotion, etc. The longer I can keep these diamonds *singing* without having to get it cleaned, the better. Also, touching those diamonds with your fingers…bad, bad, bad! That will dull the diamonds just as fast as wearing it in the shower.
I never take mine off! I have spent half of my life looking for car keys and sunglasses, I know myself too well to ever get in the habit of taking off my jewelry!!
Mine stays on through almost everything…… except when I’m painting, kneading dough, or using dyes of any kind. But, I’ve got into the practice of cleaning it once a week, a simple 2 minute procedure.
I take mine off to shower b/c it gets way too loose with the soap, and I take it off at night b/c I’m scared of cutting my FI with it. Today I was at work and I suddenly noticed my ring had slipped off. My fingers shrink after I eat (this happens to everyone b/c all the blood rushes to their stomachs) and sometimes they shrink so much my ring falls off without me even noticing. THANKFULLY after much searching, it was under my desk the whole time.. Need to get it resized a half size down I guess.
I take mine off for cooking, cleaning, showering, washing my hands, putting on lotion, and swimming. But other than that, it’s on pretty much all the time. We had my e-ring and wedding band soldered before the wedding, so I don’t worry about them rubbing against each other.
I always wear my ring out of the house, but when I’m at preschool I’ll often take it off if we’re fingerpainting or playing with flour, or in the mud, or whatever. At home I usually leave it on until I start cooking or washing dishes, which is (unfortunately) usually about 10 minutes after I walk in the door 
FYI, that is true about chlorine weakening gold and white gold. I wouldn’t worry about the occasional exposure, but if you’re the type to go swimming every day you should *definitely* find a secure place to store your ring
I take my e-ring off when I’m sleeping, showering, or doing any kind of rougher work, like deep cleaning, unpacking, etc. Also if I put on any lotion to keep it ungreasy. Also take it off to go swimming.
Somehow I went from not even wanting an engagement ring to having a bizarrely personal relationship with the darn thing. I do take it off when I shower or put on lotion, but mostly I *hate* to take it off. Honestly, I know this is weird, but I sort of feel like it’s a living thing and it’s cold and lonely without me!
And next week we have to send it back to its maker to have a nick in the setting fixed. I’m hoping to make it through without medication. (Kidding.)
Chlorine breaks down the alloys that are paired with gold. The gold itself does fine with the chlorine but the break down in the allows pits the overall metal. platinum does okay because there are very few allows. Taking your rings off is smart but still get them checked and cleaned every six months. Ok ok I’ll stop preaching Hope this helps
I take mine off (along with any other jewelry) as soon as I get home. If I leave, I put it back on. I also take it off when I’m changing clothes for the gym. I just don’t think it’d be comfortable on my hand when it’s all sweaty or with the pressure of the elliptical bars or weights.
I take both rings off to work out, shower, cook, do dishes, apply lotion… basically anything that would get them gunky! We do have an insurance policy, but my e-ring is a family heirloom and irreplaceable.
hi nice post, i enjoyed it
I’m surprised by how many people take it off! Not what I expected, for whatever reason. I leave mine on 99% of the time. It only comes off momentarily when I put on lotion. I’ve even worn it in the ocean. But my ring is tight and won’t fall off - I have to work hard to tug it over my knuckle so I don’t have a fear of losing it in water. And I do clean it a couple times a week, like someone else mentions it only takes a few minutes.
does anyone know if chlorine affects platinum and/or the diamond?
Mrs. Kiwi, Los Angeles
Age and Occupation in 06: 27, Bookkeeper
Fiance's Age and Occupation: 27, P.E. Teach/Coach @ private schools in LA
Engagement Date: March 31, 2006
Wedding Date: November 3, 2007
Venue: Radisson Hotel
About Me: I'm a bookkeeper who failed high school algebra. I'm currently living in Los Angeles, literally a street over from where I grew up with Mr. Kiwi, my honey of three years. We have a jumbo mini-dachshund (seriously, he's huuuuge), and we're planning an autumn themed wedding on a shoestring, paid for by ourselves. The wedding date is my late grandma's birthday, I needed her there somehow, and that seemed like the best way for us. I can't believe I'm a Bee! I couldn't be more proud!
I take my mines off alot as well. When I am cleaning, sleeping, crafting, etc….