Too similar sibling names

Sounds fine. The names are superficially similar, but sound different when spoken.
If you like the name, go for it.

Oh wow that is ridiculously similar! I know of a Lucy and Louis which I always think are too similar

I think Charlotte has ended up with a lovely timeless and classic name and then Colette has ended up with a dated name that isn’t classy at all. And I also think they sound too similar. Although I think Chloe and Nicole are fine, I wouldn’t say they’re classy either and they’re quite 90s.

charlotte is a lovely name. I think her sister deserves a name that’s just as classic and that’s her own name, not just picked because it sounds and looks like her sisters

Saying that, my neighbour has two sons.

Jack and Jake.

I think that takes similar to another level!

Way too alike, I think.

Too similar. When I had my 2nd, I wanted to call her a certain name. Everyone called her by it for 2 weeks. I realised my husband and I were getting tongue tied, because it was too similar to her sister's. It really naffed me off and we looked for another name that didn't share any similarity. It took 2 weeks to find something else we liked. I was annoyed because I didn't love it, but it's grown on me and can't imagine her by another name now!

Genuine question. Why?

Apart from the confusion when letters come in to Miss C. Sloth, surely you're just minimising the choice of names. Charlotte got a name you like and Colette is having one that'll do cos it fits the rules.

I don't think they sound too samey, they're fine together but I think Colette is awful.

Camellia?

Please tell me neither you or partners name start with a C 😂

The gem idea is lovely then for middle names, as links them to each other and you without being too obvious. I prefer Jade/Ruby to Opal though. They are also valid names in own right if you go with a first name your child really doesn't like. I never met anyone called Opal.

I'm on the fence

I can imagine Colette getting called Carlotte by people wanting to rhyme the names!

I don't think they are similar enough to attract ridicule but the similarly will definitely get remarked upon so if that is going to annoy you then I would go for something else

Interesting.

i have a lot of family who live in Paris (so I’m there regularly) and Colette (and Louise for that matter) are still common/popular for girls there.

Catherine is lovely, and very much of a similar classic 'ness' to Charlotte. Although with Princess Catherine having Princess Charlotte people may suggest that OP is following the royals.

For that reason I might go for Camilla, which can be shortened to Mila for day to day, so there is still the C link but it isn't too twee with Charlotte

I really like it, don't think they're too alike at all?

The similarities/theme are in their middle names, if you are thinking is will link them together. I gave both mine middle names starting with an M to honour both their Grandma's whose first names both happen to start with an M. But first names are their identity and as such should be individual to them.

Just out of interest, does C or gems have a particular significance to you?

Go for it - if you like both names please use them. Personally I don't think they are too similar. They have similar sounding endings, but completely different beginnings. Use the name you love or you might regret it later.

Too similar, I would go with Chloe.

I’ve got a similar name to my older sibling, I’m in my 40s and I still hate it. I won’t state what the names are but they are very similar to OPs, same beginning letter, different vowel and similar endings. I cringe when my sibling’s name comes up.

This is just my opinion as someone who has dealt with the jokes and snickers for decades: I guess it makes my parents sound a bit silly or immature, like they couldn’t think of a good name for me that wasn’t dependent on the name they’d already chosen for my sibling. I personally don’t even like sibling names starting with the same letter, for much the same reason.

But they're also 2 different people.

As siblings they will already have lots of things they share or have in common. There's no need to make their names match. You know one person who has a similar name who loves it, but plenty on this thread have said they hate it. Why risk it when there are so many other names you could choose?

If it has to be a C name, then there are plenty out there that are very dfferent from Charlotte. Is there a reason why you're ignoring lots of lovely suggestions such as

Camilla
Claudia
Catherine
Chloe
Caroline

Well that’s Collette out then isn’t it?

Too similar imo, I do think Chloe is a nice suggestion

This was absolutely what I thought, the 2nd is just an 'add on' or part of a set, rather than being an individual in their own right. It's their name, they need to live it with it for their whole life. Names should be chosen to last a lifetime, not as a match for another name.

Cara is a lovely C name (although not sure why both need to be a C?), Chloe, Cora, Clara.

Charlotte is a lovely classic name, which will grow with them. Lottie as a younger child, Charlie as a teenager and Charlotte as a grown up.

You seriously can’t imagine this? Really?
What if you were frying something on the hob and one of the children’s friends knocked on the door? You wouldn’t shout “CHILD, your friend is here” ?

Thats just one of very many basic scenarios before we even explore an emergency. Saying you’ve never shouted upstairs is completely unbelievable.

I think Collette is beautiful and blends nicely with her sister Charlotte . And the middle names are nice too . Go for it

They sound the same. It sounds like you’re naming the second after the first! Let her have her own identity without having to fit in with the other.

But it does form part of the first impression.