Quick! Look at your fingers right now. Are you wearing any rings? An engagement ring and/or wedding band? Take them off! To avoid the novel coronavirus, you should be washing your hands more than Lady MacBeth, and that kind of scrubbing isn’t good for your fine jewelry. I never wear my rings at home, and I’ve always recommended that my jewelry customers follow my lead. Now, for the sake of our collective health, take my advice and go ringless during quarantine. If you missed my post about washing your hands and cleaning your rings safely, check it out now.
READ MORE ABOUT HAND WASHING AND RING CLEANING HERE.
I do understand that fine jewelry serves as psychological armor — that’s why I make it! My whole life, I’ve needed some kind of amulet somewhere on my person for stress relief. That’s why I particularly love big rings: It’s like I get to hold a good luck charm in my hand all day.
So, if you absolutely have to keep a ring close by at all times, ring-expert Severine Ferrari of Engagement 101 found a couple of cute products to keep your rings safe while you’re singing “Happy Birthday” to yourself at the sink.
I still urge you to conduct any ring maneuvering away from sinks and counters, and even outside the bathroom if you can. Like I said in my last post, fine jewelry has more spring in its step than you’d imagine. If you drop a smaller piece, like a ring or earring, it can easily land more than six feet away from you after ricocheting off multiple surfaces. Obviously, I handle a lot more jewelry than people in non-jewelry industries, so I’ve had more opportunities to see crazy things happen, but I assure you that you don’t want to be the unlucky jewelry civilian who drops a treasured ring just once and watches it bounce off the floor, into the sink, and down the drain.
Those of you who do give the rings a rest don’t have to be deprived of accessories during the COVID-19 era. A one-of-a-kind, solid-gold, snake tiara — set with a giant South Sea pearl — can safely be worn all day, as long as you don’t plan to do any headstands. Look like a queen while you work from home, walk the dog, or run out to the pharmacy in my Queen of Scots-inspired design!
See this luxury design on 1stdibs.com
Shout-out to my former employee Randi, who swore she wore the bridal tiara from her wedding while vacuuming the apartment. I think of her fondly whenever I lounge around in sweats and a golden crown. Kidding! I don’t wear my museum-destined designs around the house because they have to stay pristine for their eventual owners. But I could!
An 18K gold headpiece is a luxury item, so if you’re looking for a budget-friendly accessory, consider DIY. My gorgeous sister Terri and my niece Sabrina collaborated on this cardboard shield.
I’m a fan of statement pieces in general, and this one is both eye-catching and educational.
Sabrina modeling the shield.
I wonder if Terri and Sabrina team can concoct old-school plague mask and hat for me, updated for the 21st century with rainbow lettering.
What do you think? Time for a Terri-and-Sabrina Etsy shop?
Haha