The season of diamond-induced "oohs" and "aahs" picks up where "fa-la-la-la-las" leave off from the end of December, the most popular month for engagements, through February, the second most popular.

"The ring is something that everyone is paying attention to," said Aida Sarvan, a 24-year-old marketing coordinator in Chicago who got engaged on New Year's Eve a year ago. "It's so competitive."

About 80 percent of brides get diamond engagement rings, according to the Diamond Information Center. And the carat weight for the upper crust keeps rising--"no less than 2 carats for the average successful New Yorker, whereas it used to be a carat or a carat and a half," said gem and jewelry expert Antoinette Matlins, a consumer advocate and frequent national media guest.

Read more at http://www.chicagotribune.com about the choices you can make when it comes to deciding upon the diamond engagement ring.