Phoe Posted March 27, 2014 Posted March 27, 2014 I seem to have a curse when it comes to rings... When I was in high school, I had a very pretty ring. Authentic silver and aquamarine. I adored it. One day my hand got smashed between 2 chairs, and the ring managed to get smashed while on my finger. 20 painful minutes with pliers and the ring was off my finger, but destroyed. A few months later, I was wearing a ring that was an old family heirloom. It somehow managed to fall off my hand during PE. I was devestated. Come college, I wore my high school class ring everyday. It fell off somewhere around my dorms one day, I consider myself screwed. Some VERY honest person turned it in at the front desk, and since it clearly had my name on it, the RA at the desk called me up and asked me if I lost a ring. After that day I never wore it again, and it sits pretty in my jewelry box. On New Years Eve, my boyfriend gave me a very pretty emerald ring. It was too big, so we get it resized. GARBAGE luck for me, it ends up needing to be resized twice and takes 8 weeks. While it was getting resized, my boyfriend got me a cheap stand-in ring. Pretty, but not real, and after about 2 weeks my finger was turning green and the plating was worn away. My emerald ring finally came in and I was IN LOVE, wore it everyday. 2 days ago the emerald ended up ripped out of the setting and was lost. My ring is now unwearable. I was very upset and my boyfriend tried to comfort me, saying he'd get me a new one in May for my birthday. This cheered me up. But yesterday, I actually got hit on in public, which is not at all a normal occurence. It kind of unnerved me, and I told my boyfriend about it. We both concluded that it may not have happened had I been wearing a ring. He now wants me to put the fake ring back on, but I don't want to because it turns my skin green, and it's embarassing to walk around with a green tinge leaking out from under the ring. I'm wondering if there's something that can be done to the ring to make it stop turning me green? Or am I just gonna have to go ringless? (I know he would prefer if I was not ringless until May). I was looking on amazon and saw some cute and pretty rings that were cheap and reasonable. I am not fussed about the gem/stone, all I need is that the ring be sterling silver so that the plating doesn't rub off and turn me green. I have always really liked opals, and I found a really pretty opal one for about $30. I kinda wanna buy it, but I don't want my boyfriend to feel weird that I bought myself a ring. I suppose I could wear my class ring if necessary, at least something would be on my finger, but I keep going back to amazon and looking at the opal one. Should I get the opal? Or try to make due with the ring that stains my skin? Or just be ringless for a while?
CarrieT Posted March 27, 2014 Posted March 27, 2014 The ring that turns your finger green could repeatedly be painted with clear nail polish until he can afford to buy you another ring. But, that said, I was single for 25 years and always wore rings and it never stopped people from hitting on me. Just 'cuz you are wearing a ring does not mean you are taken. Third, I see no problem buying yourself a ring that you like. I have dozens of rings; many I have made (I'm a jeweler), many I have bought, and some that have been given to me. 2
Author Phoe Posted March 27, 2014 Author Posted March 27, 2014 The ring that turns your finger green could repeatedly be painted with clear nail polish until he can afford to buy you another ring. But, that said, I was single for 25 years and always wore rings and it never stopped people from hitting on me. Just 'cuz you are wearing a ring does not mean you are taken. Third, I see no problem buying yourself a ring that you like. I have dozens of rings; many I have made (I'm a jeweler), many I have bought, and some that have been given to me. Thanks for the nail polish tip, I may try that out! Is there something I can do to get rid of the tarnish? It was some kind of brassy coppery metal that was plated with something silver. The bottom half of the band is showing the coppery metal, with tarnished silver fading up towards the top. The stones are zirconia but they have a surprising sparkle to them, and I got several compliments about it! No one would've guessed the ring was fake until the green started popping up. I don't normally get hit on, so it seems very suspect that it happened the day after I stopped wearing the ring. I suppose there are some people that wouldn't be stopped by it, but I do like SOMETHING that may signal I'm taken. I figure I really ought not look at me buying a ring I like as any different than if I bought a cute necklace I like, or a pair of earrings. I just wonder if any men would feel like their toes had been stepped on if their girl bought herself a ring when she knows that he plans on putting one on her finger when it's possible. I have several opal earrings and other opal jewelry, I feel like the opal ring would suit me well.
pickflicker Posted March 27, 2014 Posted March 27, 2014 (edited) Phoe, have you thought about asking your bf for a Claddagh ring? I wear one on my right hand (Irish heritage, FTW), they have a lovely story, and how you wear them depends on the seriousness of your relationship. Check them out here: Claddagh Rings from Glencara Copper is always going to turn green, stick with sterling silver or stainless steel. Edited March 27, 2014 by pickflicker
iris219 Posted March 27, 2014 Posted March 27, 2014 Personally, I love opals, but if you have bad luck with rings be careful. Opals are a very soft stone. I have an opal ring I loved. I tried to kill a mosquito in my car one day, lightly hit the windshield with the back of my hand, and cracked the stone. 1
CarrieT Posted March 27, 2014 Posted March 27, 2014 Is there something I can do to get rid of the tarnish? It was some kind of brassy coppery metal that was plated with something silver. The bottom half of the band is showing the coppery metal, with tarnished silver fading up towards the top. The stones are zirconia but they have a surprising sparkle to them, and I got several compliments about it! No one would've guessed the ring was fake until the green started popping up. Nope. At this point, the plating has worn off and it is tarnished for life. It probably wasn't even plated with silver, but with rhodium and the brass that is shining through will be dark and icky forever. I have several opal earrings and other opal jewelry, I feel like the opal ring would suit me well. What Iris said on opal rings. If you are hard on rings, you definitely do not want an opal ring. Keep them for your neck or ears, where they won't get as much wear-and-tear. It will definitely get bashed up on a ring. Lastly, regarding the emerald ring - find a reputable jeweler as it is probably fixable. Most metal rings are. And don't wear it when you work out or do strenuous physical activity. Bad for jewelry except for simple bands or diamonds (and even those CAN get damaged!)...
Author Phoe Posted March 27, 2014 Author Posted March 27, 2014 Phoe, have you thought about asking your bf for a Claddagh ring? I wear one on my right hand (Irish heritage, FTW), they have a lovely story, and how you wear them depends on the seriousness of your relationship. Check them out here: Claddagh Rings from Glencara Copper is always going to turn green, stick with sterling silver or stainless steel. I saw some claddagh rings while browsing and thought the story behind them made them really quite charming! I'd be happy with one of those Personally, I love opals, but if you have bad luck with rings be careful. Opals are a very soft stone. I have an opal ring I loved. I tried to kill a mosquito in my car one day, lightly hit the windshield with the back of my hand, and cracked the stone. Darn... I definitely don't consider myself particularly "rough" with rings but knowing me I'd do something and have it end up destroyed. And even though it's only $30 I'd be sad to destroy ANOTHER ring. Nope. At this point, the plating has worn off and it is tarnished for life. It probably wasn't even plated with silver, but with rhodium and the brass that is shining through will be dark and icky forever. What Iris said on opal rings. If you are hard on rings, you definitely do not want an opal ring. Keep them for your neck or ears, where they won't get as much wear-and-tear. It will definitely get bashed up on a ring. Lastly, regarding the emerald ring - find a reputable jeweler as it is probably fixable. Most metal rings are. And don't wear it when you work out or do strenuous physical activity. Bad for jewelry except for simple bands or diamonds (and even those CAN get damaged!)... Hmm, since the fake ring really does look icky with that tarnish and brass, I may want to skip wearing that one. I suppose I could always grab a cheap lil $5 ring somewhere and put clear polish on the inside of that one. I used to work out with my ring on underneath my lifting gloves, probably wasn't the best idea, but I was so in love with my ring, I felt scared even just taking it off and putting it in my gym bag. Do jewelers have loose gemstones? That's what my ring needs. The emerald got lost while I was at Rite-Aid. I've gone back a few times to ask the manager if anyone found an emerald lying around, but no luck. Now it's just an empty silver and gold setting.
melodymatters Posted March 27, 2014 Posted March 27, 2014 Honestly, sterling silver is CHEAP and won't tarnish or turn your finger green ! I agree, opals are way too soft and aquamarines while lovely need a lot of care or they end up looking like a chunk of rock salt ! Lab created emeralds are also affordable, especially in sterling, search "lab created emerald ring sterling silver" and a few lovely one's pop up for around $100 ! When you find a gemstone you like look up the Mohr scale, that will tell you the hardness of the stone ( diamonds being a ten) and pick a sturdy gemstone. I would have no problem buying myself a ring I liked and telling BF that it was just a place holder and that I would move it to my right hand when I got my new special one from him !
CarrieT Posted March 27, 2014 Posted March 27, 2014 Honestly, sterling silver is CHEAP and won't tarnish or turn your finger green ! Wrong. Sterling is 92.5% silver and the rest - alloyed in to make the silver harder - is copper and for many people, it CAN turn their finger green. There are people with copper sensitivities. When you find a gemstone you like look up the Mohr scale, that will tell you the hardness of the stone ( diamonds being a ten) and pick a sturdy gemstone. I think you mean the Mohs scale. Not Mohr. I used to work out with my ring on underneath my lifting gloves, probably wasn't the best idea, but I was so in love with my ring, I felt scared even just taking it off and putting it in my gym bag. You are LIFTING weights with rings on??? Yeah, bad idea. Even with gloves, it will cause the shank to bend and become misshapen. Probably why you may have lost it - you are forcing the metal into a shape it doesn't want to be in. Do jewelers have loose gemstones? That's what my ring needs. Absolutely. I do tons of repairs and keep stones around for that very reason. It is probably a very easy fix.
melodymatters Posted March 27, 2014 Posted March 27, 2014 Yup, sorry typo, I meant Mohs ! As far as sterling, sure a few people have a higher sensitivity but in the OP's post above she asked about SS and didn't mention a sensitivity so I assumed we were just talking about the pot metal/tin/whatever you call it ring she currently has that will not stay silver colored and will turn ANYONE's finger green. Just mentioning that silver was pretty affordable and not LIKELY to lose it's plating and turn her finger green. There are LOTS of beautiful gemstones out there but as someone who is also VERY hard on her rings I stick to diamonds for everyday wear. And no pave. And Carrie is right about your ring going out of round if you do heavy lifting ! I split a thin shank 18k gold ( which is softer than 14k) ring by doing just that until I learned better ! Have fun looking for a temporary replacement ! I LOVE jewelry shopping !
acrosstheuniverse Posted March 27, 2014 Posted March 27, 2014 I am totally missing the point you actually wanted help on here sorry, so feel free to not reply, or to berate me for it! But it got me thinking... Presumably you're wearing this ring on your left ring finger, right? For you both to think it has some impact on you getting hit on? I have to ask, why does you being hit on bother your boyfriend so much that he wants to signal his ownership over you in that way? Is he super insecure or something? Because for most women we get hit on, we decline and laugh it off, we may or may not mention it to our partners later as a funny story but not necessarily. If he wants you to appear as though you're married or engaged, he can propose to you. Until then it seems a little weird that you're both trying to present you to the world in that manner, especially given how many problems you've been having lately?
tbf Posted March 27, 2014 Posted March 27, 2014 A ring won't change getting hit on or flirted with. Sometimes rings draw even more attention from men since they don't have to worry about commitment. Consider a properly fitted platinum band with embedded chip gem(s) if you're hard on rings.
Author Phoe Posted March 28, 2014 Author Posted March 28, 2014 Presumably you're wearing this ring on your left ring finger, right? For you both to think it has some impact on you getting hit on? I have to ask, why does you being hit on bother your boyfriend so much that he wants to signal his ownership over you in that way? Is he super insecure or something? Because for most women we get hit on, we decline and laugh it off, we may or may not mention it to our partners later as a funny story but not necessarily. He actually LOVES that I got hit on, makes him feel happy that I am seen as desirable by another man. He trusts me completely and isn't for a minute feeling insecure or threatened. But he knows I was very uncomfortable with it, and considering I never got hit on until the day my ring was gone, I assumed that was why, and wanted to get another ring onto my finger to hopefully prevent it from happening again. He said he might think about getting me a new one for my birthday in May, so in the meantime I'm gonna get something cheap.
CrystalCastles Posted March 28, 2014 Posted March 28, 2014 May I ask, why are you getting a ring? Is it like, an engagement ring? Or a promise ring? You say that you're worried about people hitting on you and you feel they will stop if you wear the ring, that makes me think that you wear it on your ring finger. When you get another emerald in, can you post a pic? I love love love jewelry (even wanted to be a jeweller a few years back, read tons of books on gemstones and metals) and it would be fun to drool over.
Author Phoe Posted March 28, 2014 Author Posted March 28, 2014 May I ask, why are you getting a ring? Is it like, an engagement ring? Or a promise ring? You say that you're worried about people hitting on you and you feel they will stop if you wear the ring, that makes me think that you wear it on your ring finger. When you get another emerald in, can you post a pic? I love love love jewelry (even wanted to be a jeweller a few years back, read tons of books on gemstones and metals) and it would be fun to drool over. It's a promise ring, but I wear it on my ring finger like an engagement ring. He knows he's not allowed to propose to me yet, lol. I'd be happy to take a pic when I get a new one. Wish I'd thought to take a picture of my old one
kiss_andmakeup Posted March 28, 2014 Posted March 28, 2014 (edited) I'd go with a sapphire for your next one, if you want a coloured gemstone! They come in so many beautiful colours (not just blue) and are almost as hard as diamonds; a 9 on the Mohs scale. I did not want a diamond engagement ring (for several reasons) so my fiancé ended up choosing a sapphire mainly due to durability. I'm HARD on my hands - I'm a hairstylist so they are always in water, getting banged on shampoo bowls, etc...and it's holding up beautifully. Edited March 28, 2014 by kiss_andmakeup
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