The Mock Turtle's Lessons

[tempestteapot]

Not quite Turtle Soup: blurry aquatic notes, with a confusing, contrary splort of iris, ambrette, green apple, vodka, white mint and a squish of lime.

Aquatic apple. This one is light and sweet. I get a very faint note of mint in the background. Yum.

[lanablade]

In the imp: Apple, vodka, mint and lime. Smells like an appletini.

 

Wet: As soon as it hits my skin, a flower pops up. Iris I assume. The mint also comes to the fore, and the vodka and apple drift into the background. I'm thinking the lime is in the middle somewhere, bridging between the front and back. This really does smell like a flowery appletini. Like the boss's daughter at the annual office Christmas party. The floral in this is really very sweet and creamy. The mint gives it a pleasant coolness.

 

Dry: This smells VERY familiar. I swear I've smelled it before. This becomes very sweet and creamy as it dries, but it never loses that bite the lime and vodka give it. The mint I don't so much smell as feel in my nose as an afterthought of cold. I'm going to guess that the ambrette is what's giving the thing as a whole a warm feel. As for the aquatic notes, I'm finally picking them out, but only every other sniff or so.

 

I'm going to have to go through my old perfumes and see which one of them smells like this because it's SO familiar to me. I think this would be a fantastic summer perfume. It's very light and cooling, while at the same time having an amazing depth.

 

ETA: I just shoved my wrist at my sister thinking it might remind me of one of HER perfumes, but her only response was: 'You smell like Grandma.' That girl has no nose.

Edited December 19, 2006 by Lana Blade

[Brianne]

In the vial:

Lime candy

 

On me:

It goes on like a lime candy but immediately turns minty and "fresh" on my skin. There is an underlying green-ness that seems like it is probably the apple and lime together that keeps this mint from being "just mint" and adds another angle to it without being in-your-face fruitiness.

 

Final note:

This scent is pretty straightforward. It's mostly mint with underlying lime and apple for a soft fruity zest. Pleasant and refreshing, I would buy a bottle.

[brownbear]

This one is super, super light on me. Very faint fruity gumdrops at first. Then it goes a little salty and then it disappears.

[tinyvulture]

remember those scented markers when you were a kid, that came in scents like apple, and mint? this smells like a few of them, all rolled together! the aquatic, green apple, and mint notes stand out on my skin, and they make an odd combination. i think i smell coconut as well. the notes seem to stay individualized rather than blending together to form something new, if that makes sense. not for me. off to swaps!

[theseagrows]

i got this as a frimp from the lab-it;s very interesting, a bit of a soft aquatic with a soft mint (no sharpness from either) and an underlying sweet tea-like scent that i've gotten from many of the mad tea party scents. this is a little bit soapy but i think it'd be nice for summer.

[jade_starlight]

Oh, this is lovely. It starts off as mostly wet, aquatic flowers with a bit of green apple sort of hanging around in the background. On closer inspection, there is also a hint of mint but just enough so that you can tell that it's there. It's soft and fresh and cool, the perfect scent for summer.

[monsteralice]

Wet: Interesting. The notes come up individually; also this is the first "aquatic" where I really see why they are called that. Apple, mint, and lime are the loudest scents when wet.

 

Dry: It evolves into a nice floral. It's pretty enough, but not really unusual.

 

Duration/throw: Stayed close to the wrist the whole time. Lasted about 6 hours.

[cinderfallen]

VERY faint on me; reminded me of LUSH's Demon in the dark soap: faint apple and mint.

Edited February 9, 2007 by cinderfallen

[thematerialist]

The Mock Turtle's Lessons has absolutely nothing in it that I have a proclivity towards- I'm not much for fruit, aquatics, mint... But I picked it up from a friend on a whim and I absolutely love it.

 

I definitely get the apple martini smell, but the mint blurs the edge so nicely that it comes out pleasant and subtle and clean. The scent actually reminds me a lot of Holiday Moon (one of my all-time favorites), so it's great to have a GC scent that's comparable for when my bottle finally empties.

[crain]

I ordered a 5ml of this based upon the notes. And, I am glad that I did.

 

In the bottle: I can pick out the aquatic notes, iris, and something sweet. But, unlike others I don't really get the mint, lime or apple.

On the skin: I can still smell the aquatic notes and iris, but now I get a warm mint and some tart fruit. It is extremely well-blended, and sporty without being masculine. I love this blend.

 

It lasts for many many hours, and on my skin, it did not change too much except to fade away.

[femmefatale]

In the bottle: Yummy yummy appletinis, which happens to be my favorite drink right now.

 

Wet: sweet (not tart) apples and aquatic flowers.

As it dries the apple scent fades and it is mainly the beautiful aquatic flowers with a very very faint hint of mint perhaps. The lime doesn't really come out, which is actually ok even though I was hoping for it. This ended up perfect the way it is. It reminds me of something of when I was younger. Something I can't quite remember. It evokes a mix of excitement, longing, and a bit of sadness and regret.

I absolutely LOVE this and I am so glad I took a chance to get a bottle. It's not something I normally would've tried but decided to take a chance. I am soooo glad it did.

[little_galaxie]

I luuurves me some Mock Turtle!

 

Green, tart apples underscored by a shot of booze (but this is ver refined booze, understand? Nothing smutty or sexy here, just gives it a vaguely alchoholic note). I also get a hint of lime. It's very crisp and fresh, and a little aquatic.

 

Makes me lust after those tiny green apples that look like they should be sour, but when you bite into them it's all grainy and sweet.

Edited February 14, 2007 by little_galaxie

[glass_cat]

This is another blend where I just went straight for the bottle, not knowing how in the world I could not like something with that incredible list of fresh-smelling notes. I wasn't wrong either. This blend is beautiful and smells pretty much the way I was expecting.

 

At first sniff, I mostly smelled the apple and the watery aquatics in this, but as with so many BPAL blends, after I put it on and gave it a chance to evolve and become what it wanted to be on my skin, I could smell everything listed to some degree. It reminds me of sipping a chilled apple martini on the beach scent-wise, and it is evocative of the conversations on the beach between the Mock Turtle, the Gryphon, and Alice by the water in Wonderland.

 

This scent is everything I look for and hope to find when I order new scents to take for a spin. It's clean, crisp, and juicy yet is still very pretty and unique at the same time. The notes are easily identifiable, yet they all blend together beautifully to create an incredible olfactory experience. Mock Turtle's Lessons is the kind of scent people get a whiff of and say "mmmm.... what is that". Who doesn't want that reaction?

[grifyn_whiffs]

I get the green apple and the mint right away.

 

This is a very bright, pretty blend, and it does confuse my nose! It's fruity! It's aquatic! It's floral! I wouldn't know how to categorize this one, honestly.

 

It would be a very good sunny summer day scent for the right skin chemisty. Unfortunately, mine is putting this in the "pale white florals" category, and mercilessly eating all of the notes.

 

All that's left on my skin on drydown is a vaguely perfume-y afterscent with no discernible notes. Ah, well, off to the swaps.

[n1k1ta]

The first fifteen minutes The Mock Turtle's Lessons smelled like musky licorice. It was not pleasant. Then, general floral with no single note being distinct. After four hours it disappeared. Talk about a disappointment.

 

In the bottle, I smell the ambrette and iris with a hint of mint. I thought for sure this would be rockin' on me, but it's not. Well, live and learn.

[metaldog32]

Well…this is another frimp compliments of the Lab..thank you.

 

It’s also another “mint” fragrance for me to try. Green Tree Viper was a surprising hit for me..maybe TMTL could make it 2 for 2.

 

I usually don’t mind aquatic notes at all..I like iris, ambrette, mint and lime..so I kind of have high hopes..

 

Initial sniff from frimp: HAHAHAHAHA..the first thing I thought about when I took a whiff was…an apple martini!!! Not that this is a bad thing..but that’s what I registered. Seriously sniffing though…it’s a bit aquatic without being salty or ozone like..with a tart green apple, a touch of sweetness, and a sliver of mint. These notes are kind of muddled through the aquatic..and this makes it kind of muted..but still having some presence.

 

Applied wet on skin: Hello there green apple..I can sort of sense the sliver of mint..but it’s definitely playing a very subdued role..with me just registering it in in the back of my throat. I get a cool iris..and the sweetness..this must be maybe the ambrette??? No lime..interestingly enough.

 

Couple of minutes on skin:Gentle aquatic suffused with a sheer iris and ambrette veil. Apple is MIA..and the mint is barely there..but it’s there..in the back. Never did get that lime..darn..but I still find this a bit of an interesting fragrance.

 

Actually..I do kind of get a touch of lime..if I sniff obsessively..but it’s work people.

 

Fifteen minutes later:No,no,nnnoooooo….it’s faded so fast. I can get a faint whiff of the floral and a gentle aquatic..but that’s it.

 

Lasting power 1+ hour on me..throw is soft.

 

Bottom Line: TMTL would be absolutely PERFECT for summer because of the cool and refreshing notes in this blend. Unfortunately for me..I can’t get it to stay on me for more than an hour. I can’t bring myself to get rid of the imp though..so maybe I can play around and figure out a way to anchor it somehow. I loved it so much in the beginning…

[maijasu]

At first, this is a gorgeous, fresh, minty apple. I smell the aquatic notes too. Unfortunately, its lasting power is less than stellar, and my chemistry seems to be turning it a bit too floral. Still, I love it in its wet stage, and I might even try it in a scent locket were it not for all the other lovely fresh, summery BPAL scents that don't go a little odd on me.

[Nyx]

Lime and vodka? Yes!

 

I received a frimp from the Lab and figured with the weather warming up, I'd step away from my heavier staples like Chimera and check out some possible summer scents.

 

In the imp: Smells... weird. Not a bad weird, but I'm uncertain of it. It's very aquatic, which normally isn't a problem, but there is something in the background I can't recognize.

 

Wet on my skin: It doesn't smell like apples at all, but more of a fresh floral and salt water. Though it's very, very light I can smell a faint hint of powder. Uhoh.

 

Dry on my skin: In the little bit it took to dry down, I have been hit with an atomic baby powder bomb! It doesn't even smell faintly floral or aquatic, it's just an overwhelmingly evil baby powder scent like grannies on a rampage.

 

I'd try it in my new scent locket, but I dropped a tiny bit on my desk and wiped it up with one of the cotton pads I cut to fit the locket and it still dried down into powder. I could finally smell something underneath the powder this time, though.

 

I really wanted to like this one.

Edited April 5, 2007 by Nyx

[Electra]

I never really get any apple or lime. What I get is a minty aquatic that bears some kinship to Usher -- a scent that I really enjoy -- but unfortunately veers too far into the Doublemint gum category for me to really enjoy.

[nikkoblue]

I am an odd bird. This smells exactly like Banded Sea Snake on me without the Snake Oil. I really like it....it's like the daytime version of BSS. I can't wear most BPAL aquatics so it's fantastic when it works, and this one does! It smells very blue/purple/green. Beautiful!

[Mimicake]

The Mad Tea Party scents are becoming my favored collection. At first sniff, this one was a little confusing, the mint came across but the other scents seemed to meld into a fruity blend that I could have sworn was cherry. It was probably the green apple though? On my skin, it all softened to a not-to-sweet but still delicious scent. If I licked my wrist I'd expect it to taste like a mojito/apple martini. This will be a fun summer party scent. Mock Turtle, I heart you!

[grimms_creed]

This smelled absolutely divine in the imp -- fresh, aquatic, cool, and refreshing. I was so exited to try it on!

 

Once dry, however, this was an exact recreation of the smell of soap. Possibly Dove soap. I was deeply disappointed, as I had been certain that this would be my perfect aquatic. But alas, it was not to be.

[batsy]

In the vial: This is a green apple martini with a big drop of lime!

 

On the skin: The above doesn't hold true on my skin. The mint is strong to me, but everything else disappears. In fact, the whole thing just gotten eaten by my skin to the point where I can barely get any throw. Well, except the mint. That's still there. Oh well.

[storme]

In the imp: mm, watery fresh.

 

On me, wet: water with faint traces of mint and fruit. But it feels like an intentional faintness, and is quite nice.

 

On me, dry: I would totally drink a bottle of water flavoured to smell like this. Very airy and refreshing and crisp, but still quite faint.

 

Verdict: I would drink this, but I don't think it's quite bold enough for me to wear it when I want a watery fresh scent. Still, pretty nice.