Wedding Ring Maintenance and weekend in Minnesota

Happy Wednesday! I hope everyone had a good weekend. I spent this past weekend in Minnesota (I know, I go there alot). Joe and I drove up Thursday night, and spent Friday morning relaxing with my sister's babies. If it isn't obvious by now, I'm totally obsessed with them.

Friday afternoon I had a chance to visit my friend Mandy from law school who just had a baby 2 weeks ago named Addison. She is so cute! Friday night we went to the reception for my cousin Hayden's wedding. He had already gotten married in Florida a few weeks beforehand, and this was our chance to celebrate with him. We had a lot of fun, but the best part for me was probably when I got my dad dancing on film. I'm not going to post it on here because I'm not sure if he would appreciate that very much, but lets just say I hope dance moves are genetic :)

Cousin's picture with the groom

Saturday we went to brunch with some friends of mine at Hell's Kitchen in Minneapolis. Saturday night we went to dinner at Jensen's Supper Club for my sister's birthday. The original plan was to go out afterwards and celebrate her 31st birthday like we would have celebrated her 30th had she not been pregnant. Instead, we went back to her house, put on Anchorman, had about a half a glass of wine/whiskey for the boys each and all fell asleep. I think this means we are getting old.

Going back to the topic of weddings, I never realized before getting my engagement ring how much goes into taking care of them. I just figured you put it on and never took it off. A week after Joe and I got engaged, we went to Hawaii for my sister's wedding, and my mom noticed how dirty my ring had gotten after a full day on the beach. She suggested cleaning it with a toothbrush in the sink, and even Joe made a comment afterwards that it looked much more sparkly than before.

About a year later, when we were buying our wedding bands, the saleswoman at the jewelry store took one look at my ring, and immediately said "let me wash this for you". While slightly embarrassed that my ring neglect was so apparent, seeing how beautiful it looked afterwards gave me the motivation to clean my ring more often. It really is worth it.

Considering that this blog is all about becoming domestic, which isn't just about cooking, I figured I'd share my findings with all of you. These tips can be used on most jewelry, not just wedding rings.

First I would suggest getting a tool like this one. It is great for cleaning in between the prongs. Toothbrushes work well too, but I was always nervous I would accidentally use my ring cleaning toothbrush as my actual toothbrush.

It is important to take your ring off on occasion in order to keep the band from getting scratched and to care for the diamond. Those occasions should be when you are working out (especially weight lifting) or playing sports, and when you are putting on lotion. Lotion can make the diamond cloudy. It is also a good idea not to have your ring on when doing the dishes, not only to keep the ring sparkly, but to avoid it slipping off your finger and going down the drain. Another time when you should not wear your ring is when you are swimming in the ocean. The cold water can shrink your fingers, which means your ring could slip off and become a new accessory for a fish. I actually do know someone this has happened to.

Here are some ring maintenance articles that I have found that can be very helpful:
From: Wedding Channel
From: Martha Stewart Weddings
From: Project Wedding

When it comes to cleaning your ring, you can get a ring cleaning solution from your jeweler. However, there are some ways to clean your ring with household items. Here are some ideas:
From: YouTube
From: Ring Envy
From: Overstock.com

Hope this helps to make your day that much more sparkly :)