We quite like the name Elisabeth but can't agree on a nickname for it. Our surname begins with a B so that rules out several of them. We're not keen on overly cute/girly names. Plus I'm related to a Liz, an Eliza & a Lily...
Would it be too "out there" to call her Elis? It's a Welsh which I am spelling of Ellis & traditionally masculine but there was a female Brazilian singer called Elis Regina so I feel it's not completely without precedent...
It can also be traced back to being Biblical, which is one of the reasons we're looking at Elisabeth/Elizabeth in the first place. According to various baby name websites, Ellis is an anglicised form of Elias which is a Greek form of Elijah.
Plus, her middle name would most likely be Alice, so it would sound like an amalgamation of her first & middle names.
And, I like that it would sound similar to Emily Brontë's pseudonym with our surname, but probably not similar enough for anyone else to notice!
The only negative I can think of is people saying "but that's a boy's name". We got that occasionally after one of our DSs' was born & his name was most definitely masculine in the Bible but does sometimes get used for girls. The contrary side of me actually rather likes the idea of confusing people the other way round too... 