The Reason Rachael Ray Ditched Her Wedding Rings

Celebrity chef Rachael Ray and husband John M. Cusimano have been married for such a long time (since 2005, in fact) that the two practically look unrecognizable in throwback pictures from early in their relationship. But while the pair have been going strong for the better part of the 21st century thus far, Ray's original engagement ring and wedding band are long gone. That doesn't mean there's trouble in paradise, though. In fact, contrary to claims of red flags in her and Cusimano's marriage, there's actually a very good reason why Ray ditched her original wedding rings.

There are a number of reasons why someone who's happily married might not wear their ring. For starters, if the ring is especially valuable, they might want to protect it from getting stolen (we call this "foreshadowing"). However, the reason Ray initially decided to stop wearing her original Tiffany wedding set is because the material the rings were made out of was making them a bit of a hazard at her job.

"It was a platinum set — the engagement ring and the wedding ring. Unfortunately, I cook so much and platinum is such a fine metal that it burned my hand and my hand was so scarred, we couldn't hide it with makeup or powder. It just kept cooking my hand, so I had to get cheaper metal. I had to get a soft gold ring," Ray revealed on an early-2021 episode of her eponymous talk show.

On that very same episode of "Rachael," Rachael Ray herself and husband John M. Cusimano explained that while their original platinum weddings rings may have been a mistake, it gave them the opportunity to pick out new rings that matched their aesthetic better. "We like nighttime, we like rock music. ... We ended up with black diamond rings," Ray said. However, she also shared that she still always kept her original wedding and engagement rings on her person ... up until they got stolen. Not only that, but the thief probably had no idea they were stealing a pair of Tiffany rings in the first place.

"My wallet was stolen," Ray recalled, adding, "Because it was burning my hand, I kept my ring set with me all the time because I'm superstitious, and if I died in a plane crash, I wanted my rings with me. Isn't that crazy? So I had them in the change purse even after I got the new ring, and then my wallet got stolen. So that person had a big cash day." Ray further revealed that Cusimano later gifted her a copy of her original engagement ring for sentimental purposes, only for that version to also be lost when the pair's home burned down in August 2020. "I'm 0 for 3 with engagement rings, everybody! Good for me!" Cusimano joked. As for the couple's home, the rebuilding process began rather quickly, and was completed by September 2021, per The Hollywood Reporter.