I like
Annabel ... on paper. It's sweet, without being prissy or childish.
I agree with you about
Annabelle, though, and that ruins
Annabel for me. Because they sound the same, and in real life, names are mostly spoken. When I can't distinguish them, my feeling that
Annabelle is bratty and prissy overwhelms the appeal of
Annabel.
Annabel matches best with more antique-style names like
Eleanor,
May,
Lily.
A fictional sibset:
Annabel Mariah and
Eleanor Rebecca.
But my favorite of the names here is
Isla, so if we had two girls together, and you called one
Annabel, I'd call the other
Isla. It wouldn't matter to me that they don't "match."
Annabel Darcy and
Isla Gwenaelle.
- mirfak