Engagement Rings

One of my co-workers is planning on proposing to his girlfriend.  We are super excited for him.  He approached me on advice regarding diamonds.  He is torn about what to get her for the budget he set.  Should he get a bigger diamond or a better quality diamond?

I told him about the two things that I took away from my engagement ring.

• There is a significant jump in price at the one carat threshold.  i.e. 0.9 carat is much cheaper compared to 1 carat.  But to the inexperienced eye it's hard to tell the difference.
• What people notice the most and talk about the most is the carat.  Not color.  Not clarity.  Not cut.  To be honest, I cannot tell you what my diamond is without looking at the appraisal and it hasn't even been a year.

My advice?  If you are buying for investment then go for the 4 C's and quality.  If you are buying something to look nice on her finger go for size.  As for the other C's choose something reasonable and middle of the road.