Topaz? or Wallis for my third (hopefully) girl? Or neither ? All feedback gratefully received........

[frazzledoldbag34]

TTC third baby. Hoping for (another) girl. My other 2 girls have slightly unusual but pretty names and need something that 'goes' (so am not considering things like Rachel, Anna, Chloe etc) pretty as they may be. What do you think......or are Topaz and Wallis a stretch too far? My DH also likes Cameron (for a girl) - he wanted it for DH1 and 2, but I didn't go for it.

Now you're talking... Ellen is the best name ever! I like Elsie as a diminutive, but Nellie is nice too.

haven't read all the thread, but if you're after old fashioned and unusual and pretty, what about Fay, Hope, Hero, Iseult (=Issy or IZZY), Orla (= Celtic !), May or similar ?

I wanted Violet for a girl but have just been told I'm having a boy.

So Violet is up for grabs.

I would have chosen Florence as the middle name.

I think both names are lovely.

Congrats on the baby boy!

Unfortunately for me Violet isn't a go-er (for various reasons) and Florence is lovely but too similar to another name we've used already.

But good suggestions, thankyou

also like Ruby, Matilda, Alice, Alexandra, Harriet (esp as Hattie)

I should have been a Victorian!

How about carmen instead?

Amethist
ruby
coralina

Iris
Frances
Harriet

Hmm my tastes are perhaps a bit trad?

Personally I think more classic names are best. I think a rare name can be a bit of a weight round the child's neck.
Topaz just doesn't do it for me! And I agree about Cameron.
But it is a matter of taste of course and each to their own.
But there was some kind of study recently which implied that a challenging name could hamper a child's success. I'm not saying any of your examples are challenging, it's just an interesting subject.

This doesn't apply to you OP but on the subject I think a name that hardly anyone can spell is a real challenge for a child as they go through life. They then are slightly on the back foot in countless social moments, always having to parry jokes and unwanted comments about their name. I say to my dh that I want out next baby to have a classic name that doesn't ever make them feel defensive. It just seems to me that life it hard enough!
My dh likes really obscure names and someone said to us recently "Don't name your baby anything that is the equivalent of having a notice hanging around the back of your neck pointing at your Arse saying 'Kick Me!'"

What you see as a sign around your neck seeing 'kick me', some see as a little stool to stand on. A little sign that perhaps says "look twice", or, "look a moment longer".

I'm not a fan of crazy badly spelt names, but an unusual name, which was around more than two hundred years ago, is not an invitation to be kicked.

I think the name Emily is very pretty, but when I hear of another Emily, I think the parents should have a sign around their necks saying "I'm a merge into the background kind of person#"

Or that Emily is a beautiful name which has stood the test of time, and the parents should be commended for choosing such a traditional, much loved name.

It's the desperate need to be different that just makes me roll my eyes heavenward. Perhaps the child does not want to spend the rest of it's life spelling it's name, or explaining that although she's called Siobhan it's actually pronounced SHOW-bin (no it's not, you ponce) - and you know who you are

I mean - the SHOW-bin knows who she is

You left off the Faddagh! It's Siobhán

I agree, Emily is a beautiful sound, but it is a name with no impact at all, as we are all so USED to hearing it now. If that's what some people want, then that's fine for them, it wouldn't be fine for my child.

There is a middle ground between Emily and Hyacinth, and it is possible to choose a name which has the same feel as Emily, but which is different, Annabel or Eleanor eg.. I would categorise them in the same bracket.

I agree with Cuckoo. I don't particularly like Topaz, but I do think Wallis and Cameron for a girl will stand out, and although it's unfair to lumber a child with a name like Peaches or Apple (don't know why I chose fruit there...), I think it's actually a leg up to have an unusual name that stands out from the crowd.

As such, I have been thinking of the name Dashiell for a boy (after the author Dashiell Hammit) and although it's unusual, I don't think it's a "kick me" name.

Apart from anything else, it seems that what's in vogue now will be completely different in however many years time. People have suggested Pearl on here, as a good alternative to Topaz, but if you'd have named your child Pearl 10 or 15 years ago, you'd have been equally chastized for calling your child an "old woman's name", just as much as you are being told Topaz is a "chavvy" name now.

Just my 5 cents worth.

Oh my god - what a lot of ranting....
and all about a yet-to-be conceived bab! (although I deserve full marks for trying)

Topaz seems to evoke quite passionate responses from people - and whether they are good are bad I am of the opinion that it's a positive thing.

I totally agree with CuckooClock about the fading into the background thing. To me it just indicates a lack of imagination and a baa-sheep mentality. BUT

having said that if you love a name and half your town also loves it and uses it, and you don't mind your kid being one of loads with the same name then on you go! Who am I to criticise?
However, IMHO, I think picking a name because it's 'safe' and you know 5 other friends with children also called that (so it must be an okay name) is a pretty dull strategy.
Zzzzzzzzzzzzz

I'm not going to reveal my other 2 DD's names on here but they are not 'Topaz'-ish, or indeed Chavvish at all. (not suggesting that I believe Topaz to be Chavvish - whatever THAT means)......
They are names that have been mentioned before on various threads and pretty much with a unanimously positive response. Pretty, traditional and very slightly unusual would sum them up. And we're actually quite posh (well, so I think anyway) !!!!!!!!! (preens and flicks hair whilst dripping in mink and jewels. Summons butler.)

And again to agree with Cuckooclock I think to have a name that makes people look twice isn't a bad thing. And if the child is a nice person (which hopefully all my children will be) she won't be penalised for having an interesting name. It will just add to her charm.

As you may have gathered the negative comments seem to be making me all the more determined now to have a Topaz. So there!
(sorry, suspect am hormonal - hence the rant - oops

Anyway loving all the suggestions and if you can be bothered, keep them coming..........you never know

And SURELY (just looked at another thread)

Topaz is SURELY, SURELY a better choice than RANDI?????????

D'you know, Topaz has been growing on me.

In itself it's not an ugly name at all and it's nice to have a 'gem' name IMO.

Trouble is, round here this sort of name would be used by the chavs - so it's very difficult to get past that for me. However I think it is one of those names where the girl 'makes' the name IYSWIM. If she is a classy, stylish little girl, the name will semm classy and stylish IMO.

(still hope you have a boy, though. Boys rock )

Do you honestly think people are really so interested in your child's interesting name that they will pause and give it a second thought? Honestly, people are too busy with their own lives to really care - saying something nice or positive about your carefully thought out child's name is nothing more than politeness. Don't you just give your child the name you like, rather than trying to work out whether it will have enough impact or whether the spelling is unique enough?

I have a very unusual surname - unique as in the only family in this country with this name. Believe me, when you've spent 14 years (dh has spent 45 years) spelling the ruddy thing, correcting pronounciation and explaining that no, you don't know it's origin then it becomes a pain in the neck, and not a joy to behold other people's second look - neither is it a charm!

And yes - I know I left off the Faddagh from Siobhan - I simply have no idea how to add it using the keyboard! [impressed emoticon]

Absolutely Frazzle, There is a middle ground inbetween Emily and Randi!!! And maybe Topaz or Margot is in that middle ground.

Did you suggest Margot? I can't remember if you did or not. That's my daughter's name, and although I think it's creeping up, it's classic enough not to be ridiculed, but quirky enough that we don't meet any others (well, no 6 yr old Margots anyway.)

I like Topaz though. It's unusual, easy to spell, recognisable, pretty without being frilly,,, it would grow on people. Some people use the top 50 names as their inspiration!!

Paolo's Mum, if nobody ever gave a thought to what people called other people's children, this board probably wouldn't exist. I keep my opinions to myself, but I know whether or not I like the names of my friends' children. It doesn't matter, but yes of course, people do give it a thought.

Control+Alt+A = á

I mean in real life I keep my opinions to myself, obviously my opinions are all over mumsnet like a rash!

Topaz jus't doesnt sound good. that's probably why it has so many responses it doesn't have a pleasant ring

paolosgirl -- do you really think nobody gives a second thought about another person's name? There's reams of research in various psychological fields that says the opposite, that somebody's name will influence other people's perceptions in all sorts of ways. To assume that a given name is not important and won't have an impact in life isn't true.

That said, if the child is in a room full of 10 other Emilys / Rubys / Graces, then you're probably right - people won't think much at all, other than they have a pretty name that everyone else's DD has.

The point is, you can have an unusual name, not spelt in a funny way, and which still has "class" (if you want to put it that way) that will make people remember you rather than make you blend in with everyone else. I think it's a valid argument for the OP, Cuckoo, or anyone else to say that giving a child an unusual name is an advantageous thing to do in life, as long as they haven't called their child Sycamore or some such made up name.

Anyone out there called Sycamore!

LOL Loriycs