Horn and antler ring care guide
Please call call, text, or email me and tell me what you do for a living and tell me how your ring is holding up to the abuse and how often you follow my care guide! I truly want to know about it. I personally like call the acrued wear and tear "patina" or "character"
If you want it to stay perfect like the day you got it then here is my guide for you!
To prolong the life and beauty of your horn or bone ring, Avoid wearing it during hard labor. Store it in a cool, dry, dark place when you are not wearing it. Avoid repeated wet and dry cycles as this accelerates it drying out to the point of cracking and flaking. Extended exposure to water slightly softens the material (particularly with the horn) and makes it prone to damage. Avoid high heat or burning which can discolor and deform the ring. Avoid leaving it in the sunlight as this will dry it out. Imagine chapped lips or if you have ever found bleached white bones while hiking that are cracking and brittle from the months of sitting in sunlight. I recommend taking your ring off before washing your hands or body with any modern soap. Most chemicals accelerate it drying out.
I say only clean and moisturize your ring if you notice it is loosing its luster. Every other month should be enough. Personally I rarely clean and moisturize my rings and so far they hold up great and I like how they look even if they get a slight defect. If your ring is exposed to lots of water then you may need to increase the frequency of cleaning and moisturizing. The idea behind moisturizing is to help keep the material saturated with a substance that keeps water out and keeps the material strong.
To clean and moisturize your ring first wash your hands. Next, use warm water only to clean the ring and fully dry it with a clean towel. Then let it sit and dry out fully for a few minutes. After that, you need to add some natural moisturizer to it. My favorite product for the job is rendered animal fat such as tallow or lard. Fish oil works quite well too, or an alternate option would be olive oil or coconut oil or another plant based oil. To apply it, again make sure your hands are still clean. animal fat and plant oils are also good for your skin so you can use your bare hands. A very small drop or smudge on your finger tip is all it takes. Thinly coat all surfaces on the ring and thoroughly rub it onto it (the more rubbing the better) then wipe off the excess. Let the ring sit and soak up the moisture for a few minutes or better yet do this before bed and let it absorb over night and put it back on in the morning.
Thats all there is to it! I live in a very dry environment and I am hard on my rings so I should be doing this every other month I'd say. Every other month should be enough under most conditions. Don't worry to much about it. It will last quite some time regardless. Extreme dryness will lead to cracking and flaking like chapped lips and prolonged wetness can soften the horn slightly making it more prone to scratching so its all about balancing the level of moisture and using good moisturizers. Once a crack starts there is no stoping it.
