Anything of "real" value, jewelry or papers, goes into our safety deposit box at the bank when we travel.

what an interesting thread without becoming nasty. wow!

I wear mine all the time - my ring that I got engaged with cracked all the way down to the point - don't know when it happened - I just looked down one day. Insurance paid for most of the 'upgrade' so all sentimental value is gone. It could never be the same again, so why not pick something different :)

sometimes insurance is worth it!

I wear inexpensive simple earrings and a cheap watch (I'm very very hard on them, so I refuse to spend money on them). All things that I'm comfortable losing should it happen.

I don't know the statistics and I'm sure someone else could tell me, but I would imagine that you have a higher likelihood of it getting stolen from your house/room/etc. than forcibly removed from your body. (mugging, etc.)

I never travel with any jewelry except for a watch and a (costume) necklace. I was explaining my thought process to my mother-in-law before we took a day trip to the big city. Did she get the hint...NO....she did not alter her rings on every finger, 5 neck chains and 8 bracelets.

I usually wear my rings. But recently, my hands have been swollen. So, I might not take my rings to Savannah and Charleston in 12 days.

I have never had a problem with jewelry on my past travels. And, sometimes I like to buy very nice, locally crafted jewelry when I travel. So, even if I don't bring my rings, I wind up wearing expensive jewelry anyways.

My new diamond ring was damaged when lugging around our bags. Was advised never to wear them to third world or very poor countries by my insurance company - just to be on safe side I enjoy my travels with the best bling I have - my partner!

I never thought of it getting banged up due to carrying bags and the such. Good point.

Thank you all for taking the time to answer what I thought might be a really silly question! My lovely ring will stay at home but I am thinking of getting a plain band to wear with my wedding band. (My wedding band is very thin and looks strange without a companion ring.)

Thanks again y'all!!!

Totally depends on the trip. When I go to Europe, yes I'll wear it.

However, when I went to Africa and climbed Kili and then did the Serengeti, my diamond was in our fireproof safe at home.

I'll always wear my diamond half-eternity band though...

Amydelta - Africa. When the ring is ripped from your finger ( or cut from your finger) it's gone and nothing would ever replace the sentimental value so paying a hefty insurance premium doesn't come into the picture.
I keep all my rings in the bank and have peace knowing where they are.

McAllister, I understand about your wedding band looking odd on its own - mine was made to fit with my engagement ring, almost like puzzle pieces, so the band looks a little strange when worn alone. If you feel better leaving your rock at home and having something simple that still looks nice, go for it! I agree with surfmom - this is an interesting thread, and an important question.

deladeb - I think I was behind your mother-in-law in a security line at the airport ;) I was behind this woman one time who practically had to strip down to her skivies to get all her jewelry off and go through the machine - LOL.

On the issue of possible damage to rings - I am really surprised that there are so many who never take them off. I basically only wear my wedding ring when I leave the house. I don't clean, do yard work, do home improvements, or any of those things with my ring on.

I doubt if you'd find any British woman who would remove her wedding ring. Most people consider it very unlucky. Your husband puts it on your finger and there it stays.
I have also never seen any wedding ring that wasn't a plain gold band, or at the most a combination of one or two colours of gold.
I went for an emergency operation once and had to remove my rings.
The nurse put a piece of sticking plaster over my wedding ring because, "We would never allow a lady to remove her wedding ring". Nurses are very superstitious

I don't wear my engagement ring when I travel, because I only wear it to work and when I go out somewhere. Around the house and running errands I wear a simple band--just so much easier, don't worry about scratching my kids when I help them get dressed or snagging clothes with a diamond.

Why bother having bling if you're going to leave it in a safe. Mine might not be an engagement ring, but the diamonds on my fingers and screwed into my ears are with me wherever. I've never thought to leave them home, whether to the supermarket, the beach, big or small city, even in Africa. I have them, I wear them.

All my precious stone earrings have screw backs so once they're on, it's more trouble taking them off - no push-pins for these. Likewise the bezel set diamond on a plain gold chain sits on my neck wherever I am.

While I remove my hand and wrist jewelry when at home, to sleep, the rest are never removed except to be cleaned. Otherwise, it only the question of which "real" jewelry I want to take when traveling; I dare say, I don't wear everything all at one time.

If anyone out there has items they done wear or are stored in a safe... I'll gladly put them to good use.

No. I am divorced.

Absolutely not!!! But it depends on your engagement ring. Mine is lovely but attracts too much attention. If I lost it, despite the fact it's insured, I'd be really sad. Also, it's unwise to wear flashy jewelry when you travel anywhere - your guard is down because you're distracted by the sights, maybe a little tired from traveling and exploring so much... my advice, always look as inconspicuous as possible so you can look at the scenery and not have potential thieves looking at you!

This is an interesting thread.

It reminds me of my all time favorite euphemism. The mother of a college friend once used the phrase "travel pearls" and I have never called them "fake" since then.

For the record, I leave my good jewelry at home, and bring a few pieces of "travel jewelry."

I've never wore any jewelery while travelling...why make yourself a target? I always think back to a woman I saw in Kenya in '99...she was this loud, obnoxious woman dripping in gold and diamonds in the back of one of the safari vehicles (thankfully not ours!) My husband and I often wonder if she made it out of Nairobi with all of her jewelery!

I don't wear my diamond for long vacations - I do wear it daily normally, but not when I'm doing something that could damage it - so, when I'm on vacation I figure it's safer not to take it, than to take it and risk damaging it while doing something physical because I don't have a safe place to put it.

I always leave it with my cousin if I don't take it. She enjoys it and wears it to lunch with her sisters, etc. and I know that my family isn't getting a hold of it. They get $$ in their eyes when they see the ring and I don't trust them not to sell it if they get a hold of it. It's also fully insured.

Always, as well as my wedding band and another sapphire and diamond cocktail ring. I never take them off at home, so I'm not going to take them off to travel.

The only problem I ever had was in Thailand--I knocked one of the smaller stones out of the ring after getting it caught on hook of the mini-bar and I couldn't find the stone. It was easily replaced by the jeweler I originally bought the ring from.

Insured.

I never take my ring off- haven't in the last 9 years. It looks like a solitaire diamond engagement ring, and it is rather the same kind of occasion that I received it. But I am never going to get married. Oprah and I- want to be eternally engaged.

I got it when I was 50 yrs old and he picked it out without me. The sales clerk really did a job on him and said-do it big at this age or don't do it at all.
He listened to her and I am forever thankful to a person I never met.

I never take it off and it fit perfectly without any sizing.