Girlfriend is a Nurse... Does that complicate things?

[1stTimeRockHunter]

I started a thread about settings an lifestyle was brought up. My girlfriend is a nurse and from talking with her she likes Halo & Pave settings. Will she be able to wear this kind of ring to work? Should I not expect her to wear her ring to work? What are your thoughts?

 

[LoveLikeCrazy]

I am a nurse and there are no specific rules at my hospital regarding jewelry. Most of my coworkers happily wear their rings. I don't. I have a 6 prong solitaire (no pave) and a 7 stone shared prong band. Not only do i not want my rings all germy, but i put gloves on and off multiple times a day and don't need to worry about anything getting loose. I chose to buy a plain band to wear to work.

 

[LuckyKelleyK]

I started a thread about settings an lifestyle was brought up. My girlfriend is a nurse and from talking with her she likes Halo & Pave settings. Will she be able to wear this kind of ring to work? Should I not expect her to wear her ring to work? What are your thoughts?

Does she work in a hospital? It really depends what type of nurse she is. I am a hospital nurse and am currently having a new halo pave ring made for my upgrade, but I will not be wearing it to work. The small crevices are good places for bacteria to hide and no matter how much you clean it I would still feel gross about it. I also of course don't want my ring to get damaged. I like just wearing a wedding band to work because when I wash my hands a lot, if I have more than one ring on then I always have moisture under my rings and its just a hassle. That being said, many of my coworkers do wear their engagement rings to work, some with pave and they don't seem to have a problem. She could always wear it on a necklace at work. All of the places I have worked have let nurses wear their wedding rings, even if there is a restrictions on other jewelry. So, it comes down to personal preference and the policy where she works.

 

[kathley]

My daughter is an ICU nurse, and she is constantly putting on/off surgical gloves. Also, the fast pace of her work puts her in a position of working with heavy equipment where her hands are in contact with and against solid items during the day. Add cleaning/disinfecting chemicals and chemo drugs to the mix as well. A delicate setting would not last long with her in her work life.

 

[John P]

You've received great comments above: There is no better resource for opinions than people in the same role. With that said, you probably need to know what her personal position is... Will she be "married" to wearing her ring every day, or not?

As a jewelry professional I have worked with many ladies with active hands who want to wear their ring every day. In such cases I recommend low-height, simple settings. Those in science/healthcare/etc, who put gloves on and off and deal with sensitive materials must also treat the cleaning of their rings like the cleaning of their hands. Fortunately, a low-riding, simple setting is also an easy piece to drop in a good ultrasonic cleaner every evening, so it's squeaky clean and sparkly at the beginning of every day.

As practical as the above might sound, in some cases the lady wants to have the more complex setting, for personal/aesthetic reasons. That's absolutely fine, but I would not recommend her to wear it on the job any more than a construction worker or boxer would ... In such cases she might want to consider having a simple band to wear to work, which she can swap-out for her dreamy-delicate bling once she returns home.

I deal with this myself. In a former life I was a percussion artist, working with my hands constantly, and could not have something on my fingers or wrists (I shudder at the number of watches I took off and left in music venues by accident).

 

[John P]

I would like to thank in-flight WiFi @ 35,000 feet for a duplicate post...

Carry on

 

[Ally66]

I'm an ICU nurse, and I'm definitely more comfortable wearing just a simple wedding band, in terms of hand washing/using hand gel so many times a day, gloves off and on all day, just using my hands for so many different tasks. But plenty of my friends wear ring sets and more elaborate settings without apparent problems. If hospital policy allows, then it's really a matter of personal preference.

 

[1stTimeRockHunter]

All the points brought up are what Im concerned about (putting gloves on over it, washing hands, germs, ect). She works in the hospital on a respiratory floor and has a wide range of patients she helps. I asked her if girls on her floor even wore a ring and she said half do and the other half don't. I guess I would leave it up to her ultimately.

I know she is set on getting a halo/pave setting. Are there any characteristics of the setting I should be looking for, you mentioned it setting low? How would I tell and what else should I be checking for.

 

[DL]

Gf is a nurse on a cardiac unit. When we were looking at settings she wanted something that was lower and not too intricate. She didn't want something that would be hard to clear or would make wearing gloves difficult.

It also helped she didn't want a diamond that was too large.

Speaking of a good ultra sonic cleaner is there a thread somewhere with recommendations?

 

[arkieb1]

How about something like this which is bezel set no prongs to catch on anything but it still has a halo of melee;

http://www.victorcanera.com/jewelry/engagement-rings/old-european-cut-diamond-in-bezel-halo

 

[Sunstorm]

Hi OP, I think you should still get her what she likes. She probably knows she may not wear it to work at all times but she can just wear a wedding band to work then and wear her beautiful ring out when she is not working. I know I would want to do the same. There are many of us ladies who have or do work at places where we cannot wear our jewelry, yet still love to have bling we admire. I now can wear my jewelry to work as I work with jewelry, gemstones and in a jewelry store but I used to work at law firms where I was typing sometimes for 18 hours a day and I could not stand jewelry on my hands. I still wore earrings and I came to work with my ring and bracelet watch on, just took it off and put it on my desk while I was on the computer. She does not have this option but she has a life outside work too. I think even a solitaire can be a nuisance when you use your hands and put gloves on. This way I see no difference in the setting you choose for her. The diamond will still bulge out and could be uncomfortable with gloves on or rip when you put them on. If she was going to wear her ring to work and was a construction worker, even a simple solitaire would be too much as well. I think in her case it is simply a matter of whether she will wear her ring for work or not and not what style setting you should choose.

 

[Magpie4426]

I think that setting by Victor is a great idea! Beverley K may also have some similar settings, at a lower price, if that's a factor

 

[tyty333]

My SIL is a nurse. She choose a low-profile bezel setting.

 

[junebug17]

I would just go with the setting you think she'll like the best. I don't work outside the home, but I'm a part-time caregiver for my mother and wear gloves sometimes and I don't wear my ring while I'm taking care of her, or doing household chores - it's just easier not to and I don't want to worry about damaging it.

I love the setting Arkieb posted and think it would be a good option. Although I think any ring with any height to it will get caught when taking gloves on and off. A very low bezel set ring would make the most sense but it doesn't sound like she would care for that style. My mother was hospitalized recently and the nurses and aides were constantly pulling their gloves on and ripping them off, and doing it quickly! But as you said, she can decide for herself if she wants to wear it to work or not.

 

[ame]

I have several friends and relatives who are nurses. In a hospital setting, they all are not allowed to wear anything more than a plain band due to sanitary reasons. In doctor offices, they can wear whatever they want, though most don't wear more than a band to work.

 

[partgypsy]

I work in research, no longer in a lab setting, but multiple times a week I am in the hospital outpatient clinics interacting with patients. After each encounter we are required to wash/disinfect our hands. I can imagine for a nurse there is more patient contact and glove work.
For me I want to be able to wear my ring to work so I choose settings are are relatively durable and easy to clean/dry (unless it's a day I know I won't have patient contact).

Has she said whether she wants to wear her ring to work? If she is fine changing into it after work then the skys the limit. If she wants to wear it to work, while there is no rule of thumb, the fewer the stones and the thicker the setting should be more durable.

 

[AprilBaby]

I'm a dental hygienist. I don't wear any rings to work as I hate when they get gooked up with soaps and such, but I LOVE putting them on when I get home. Get her what she wants!

 

[ccuheartnurse]

Hi There,

I'm a nurse in critical care. I never wore my rings to work & when I got married, I bought a 4mm simple white gold band with a migraine edge to wear to work. Theres just too many issues that can go wrong wearing a ring. I also used the band to travel with & left my rings in the safe. Perhaps present her with a simple band as her wedding gift.