Hyde Park Blog

An engagement ring will not stretch on its own. Rings are made of metal and metal will not stretch on its own. What will expand or contract is your fingers. If your ring is too small, then the best thing to do is to take your ring to a professional jeweler or a jewelry store and request that your ring be expanded, or stretched. Many ring metals do allow for stretching to happen. Engagement rings should only be stretched up to two sizes because anything larger will put too much stress on the ring.

How Can You Stretch A Ring?

If you go to a professional jeweler or jewelry store, they can stretch the ring for you. This process is slightly more complicated than the process of shrinking a ring.

• First, new measurements will be taken of your finger
• Next, the metals of the ring will be stretched.
• Rings can be stretched by a half size naturally

If you need more than a half size up from your original ring size, then more will need to be done to stretch your ring. The jeweler will need to:

• Cut the ring and then stretch the ring to fit the ring size you need
• They will add more metal to the ring
• After, they will solder, polish, and clean the weld on the ring

What Types Of Engagement Rings Cannot Be Stretched?

There are some rings that cannot be stretched. If you have an eternity band, then the ring cannot be stretched. In order to stretch a ring, you need metal in which to stretch. An eternity band has diamonds all around the ring so it would be impossible to make any alterations to the ring. If you plan on doing an eternity band, then you need to make sure that you have the exact size of your partner’s ring.

There are also several metals that cannot be stretched. These metals include:

• Tungsten: this metal is too hard to stretch
• Stainless steel: while not traditional, it is hard to stretch by hand.
• Titanium: Another metal that is too hard to stretch
• Rose Gold: This metal is too brittle and will break if attempted to be stretched. The rose gold will crack easily under any kind of stress.

The same as with having an eternity band, if you plan on having any of these metals as the band for your partner's ring, then you need to make sure you know their exact ring size.

How To Tell If Your Ring Is Too Small

If you’re feeling like your ring is too constrictive, then it may be time to stretch your ring. If your ring is small, then you could potentially feel like your ring is causing indentations on your finger, possibly cutting circulation off from your hand, or just a mild discomfort in your finger. While in some instances it may just be that your finger has swelled up and time will reduce the swelling.

Conclusion

Overall, your ring will not stretch naturally over time. If you feel that your ring is getting too tight, then you can bring it to a professional jeweler or a jewelry store so that you can have your ring stretched up to two sizes. Any more than two sizes and your ring could break because of the added stress on the ring.

At Hyde Park Jewelers, we can help you pick out the rings of your dream. No matter what you’re looking for, you’ll get professional care for your love and commitment. Contact us today to get your proper ring size or to stretch your ring if need be.