Quick and Easy Buying Guide
Carat weight: 1 carat = 200 milligrams = 6.5 mm diameter. Doubling weight doesn't double diameter.
Diamond clarity: FL/IF/VVS/VS = super expensive, near perfect. SI = best value if you can check a photo for obvious inclusions (defects).
Color: D-G = colorless, expensive, only if you have money to burn. H-J = best value. Can go lower in gold metal settings than white metal.
Cut: Better cut ratings let more light into a diamond, making it sparkle more. Very important property, don't skimp here.
Set a budget and minimum cut (Premium). Go J color for gold and I/H for white metals. Go searching for SI1/SI2 clarity diamonds at James Allen. Pick a diamond with small/no inclusions. Choose a ring setting and buy it risk-free (60-day returns).
2.74 Carat Diamonds
The diameter of a 2.74 carat diamond is approximately 9.17 mm. The shallowness of a diamond, which depends on how the diamond has been cut, will affect the relationship between carat weight and diameter of the diamond - because of this reason, 2.74 carat diamonds will only average a width of 9.17 mm, but will not always be precisely this width.
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Carat weight is not the be all and end all of picking a diamond which looks as big as possible. The diamond's girdle thickness will also play a role in affecting what the diamond looks like. If you're umming and ahhing about whether to get a diamond or another precious gemstone, a relevant piece of information regarding their carat size is that the stones have varied densities, leading to different sizes for stones of the same weight.
A large diamond which has a huge crack down the middle, or alternatively a big yucky looking inclusion, is not a good look - it looks like someone has gone for size and sacrificed all the other desirable properties of the diamond. Clarity, for example, can be just as important in picking a diamond.
No gold-digging for me... I take diamonds! We may be off the gold standard someday. Mae West .