Mouse's Long and Sad Tale

[Limelight]

Vanilla, two ambers, sweet pea and white sandalwood.

This is a nice, amiable blend of vanilla with slight amber and the sandalwood sticking straight up through the middle. The sweet pea is keeping things, well, sweet, and like YoakeNoKami said, it tempers the overall impression of the fragrance. I like this all right, but not enough to buy it, as something in it tends to irritate my throat and is giving a slightly sour "aftersmell."

[VioletChaos]

in the imp: sweet, creamy and floral. heavy.

 

wet on skin: a melon slinks out to mix with the vanilla and i believe the amber. nice! it tones down the heaviness a bit.

 

dry down: it's going powdery on me reminds me of the kind of commercial perfumes i liked in high school, like 'Love's Baby Soft' and the Designer Imposters line.

 

in all: a good one to convert your conventional friends. but for me? i'll pass!

[mudspinr]

I bought this just based on the notes without testing an imp first and I am glad!

 

In bottle: sandalwood and amber with just a hint of vanilla. Warm smelling.

 

Wet on skin: sweetpea. Starts very fresh and sweet, not cloying. Suprisingly light note but completely hijacks the scent while it is wet.

 

Drydown: notes meld nicely. Sweetpea backs off and the sandalwood/amber returns. The vanilla stays in the background but works as a bridge between all the rest of the notes. Scent remains warm and intimate, doesn't cross the line into either cloying or vampy. Doesn't go powdery or "old lady perfume" either. Medium throw.

 

Later: Only lasts a couple hours on my scent-eating skin, but doesn't morph much. Lasted entire day in scent locket and still going.

 

Very nice scent overall. Would be appropriate for wearing at work as well as going out. Partner likes it enough to sniff and cuddle. Mine is a happy mouse!

[fourspecialgirls]

At first, I really thought this kind of sucked. I couldnt smell it, and what i did smell was a very light floral. I was about to wash it off and got distracted by the baby waking up.

 

Fast forward 10 minutes.

 

Id forgotten Id applied it, and I get this amazing whiff of something delicious...not really in a eating way, but GOOD.

 

I realized it was coming from my wrist...

 

 

MINE....GRRRRRRRR!

[vampkat]

I was very sad about this one. I wanted the creamy vanilla everyone raves about, but instead I got SANDALWOOD with a little amber, and nothing else. *sigh* Sandalwood and I don't get along, and it likes to overpower everything when I put it on.

[pamplemousse]

I got this as a freebie imp with purchase; have worn it twice now and still can't decide if I like it! I'm not normally a floral girl, so the sweet pea in here is not my usual thing -- and on me it's almost entirely sweet pea and no vanilla that I can detect. The scent is soft enough at first that I thought that it would be gone off me inside an hour. But once it dried down it hasn't seemed to diminish much -- it was never strong to start out with but what strength it had seems to be unchanged several hours later.

 

I think this might grow on me over time, and it will be lovely for Spring. Like some of the other posters, I'm also going to try it in a scent locket.

 

Would also be lovely for scenting a lingerie drawer, I think.

[CrazyPretzel]

A good soft, sweet vanilla that's neither too foody nor too perfumey. Amber can be a little sharp on me but it's not in this blend... and sweet pea can be rather intrusive, but it's not in this blend.

[alsatia]

This was one of the first scents I chose as something I'd like to try, when I saw people talking about BPAL many moons ago. Someone sent me a free sniffie, and my initial reaction was "Ew, what a chemical, cheap perfume smell!" Thankfully I had some others to try which were much better, although I was disappointed that my first choice didn't turn out how I expected.

 

I never wrote up a real review of any of these, as back then I didn't expect to get heavily involved in trying BPAL. So I'm giving Mouse's Long and Sad Tale another chance.

 

In vial: Still a common perfume smell, in which I can't distinguish different notes, but it seems less offensive to my nose than I remembered.

 

On skin, wet: Wow, what an improvement! Instantly I can identify the sandalwood, which gets a bit overwhelming if I inhale too much. The sweet pea is there faintly, and there's another scent that I can't quite make out, but it must be the combination of vanilla and amber. I'm not sure what amber is supposed to smell like.

 

It smells a little bit like baby powder overall, which is not actually a bad thing in my opinion, and it also reminds me of something else that I can't put my finger on. Probably a perfume I tried years ago.

 

On skin, dry: I went to the restroom as this was drying, and the combination of baby powder plus general restroom smells brought to mind images of diaper rash. Not exactly something I want popping into my head at random times. It seems like the baby powder scent is going to stick around for a while.

 

After time: An hour later, the scent has faded a great deal, and while it still smells somewhat like baby powder there's been a change. I can't pinpoint what additional scent has appeared, but it's less pleasant than the strong baby powder scent was. This doesn't seem to have much throw (a good thing, at the moment) but that could be because I had so little of it to work with.

 

Conclusion: Might make a comforting room scent, but I don't want to spend all day smelling like this.

[angelfish323]

I am finally trying to be more consistent with sniffing GCs . . .

 

Wet, this starts off as a woodsy vanilla with a touch of golden amber.

 

As it dries, the sweet pea comes out, adding a beautiful sweet floral note to the mix.

 

It's creamy and much lighter than I expected. Fragile, almost, with light throw.

 

All of the notes stay through drydown, which is nice. And they blend beautifully.

 

Something wistful about this blend . . . pretty and not overwhelming.

[willowtreeling]

i had no idea what notes were in this blend when i put it on....at first i though tea? and then, it reminded me of Juliet. It smells creamy and sweet. I really really like it--this is what I wish Alice or the White Rabbit smelled like.

 

t doesn't really smell like vanilla, amber or sandalwood to me and the sweet pea doesn't smell like the sweet pea that grows outside my window (that makes me sneeze) but that is what I recognized from Juliet, I guess. It also doesn't smell floral, or foody.

 

I don't know, but it reminds me of fresh, blue and white striped laundry on a clothesline in a beautiful garden, blowing gently in a breeze. Very Victorian, very Alice. I love it and I think it will go on my next order for a big bottle.

[hellomoonglow]

Oooooo! This is lovely! I'm so glad I bought 2 bottles! Wet it is quite lovely and warm. I love the sweet pea, which really opens up on my skin. Dry down, it almost smells like Midway or Marshmallow Poof, which is weird to me. It reminds me of something very silky, smooth and almost sweet. I'm taking this to Mexico with me next week along with a little pipet so I can squirt some in the bathtub water. That means it'll be my confirmed "vacation scent". I can't wait!

[laliloo]

So soft and gentle. A very comforting, slightly sweet, warm scent, without being foody. I like it very much! Like many other people on this review thread, I've put this on my 5ml 'to buy' list and it'll be included in my next lab order. I can imagine this becoming one of my 'comfort' scents. It's a snuggler!

[donnatron]

Imp: A sort of sweet, oily Victoria's Secret-esque scent. It smells like a hand cream from there someone gave me ages ago.

 

Wet: SWEET! My skin usually reacts to sweet in a positive way but right on it's all up in my face screaming and throwing frosting at me. As it dries down a bit, the other notes come out to play and I predominantly smell vanilla and an almost... fruity/curranty scent. It must be the sweet pea.

 

Dry: Quite nice. Sweet, floral vanilla. The sandalwood has decided that I don't play nice and doesn't come out at all. I don't know if this will become a regular scent, but I'm happy with the imp I have.

 

Throw: Very good. I've got Dragon's Bone on the other wrist and there are some strange olfactory things going on as both battle for dominance.

 

Overall: I like this. As I said, I don't know if I need a whole bottle, but I like my imp. My one caveat is that I don't think this would lend itself well to soap or massage oil or my all time favourite BPAL use: bath oil. It just seems to heady and sweet and overwhelming. Definitely a one-layer scent.

[Rouge]

Oh wow. Oh oh oh oh. Wow.

 

I think I'm in danger of fainting because I keep taking long, deep breaths of the delicious aroma wafting from my wrists and I'm starting to feel lightheaded...

 

 

In the vial - Sweet vanilla and florals, though not necessarily a foody vanilla. It's very feminine and soft.

 

Wet on the skin - More warm and comforting vanilla. There's certainly nothing sad about this blend!

 

Next stages - The notes in this perfume are perfectly blended; they're a subtle wash of soft, warm notes rather than individual scents layered on top of each other.

 

Dry down - The vanilla sweetens over time but other than that there's little morphing of the scent.

 

Overall impression - This scent makes me think of a Victorian picnic or summer tea party with white lace parasols and creamy linen serviettes. It's going to be perfect for warmer weather!

 

Similar scents - Antique Lace

[twilighteyes]

In the imp this is almost fruity. I had to do a double take at the ingredients... hmmm no fruit here! Very sweet and a little mouthwatering. Bottom is a woody floral.

 

Once it dries on my skin, the sweet pea spices it up a bit and the sweetness dies back to a reasonable level. The sandalwood and amber seem to ground it.

 

Very nice, but Blood Amber (which I am wearing on the other wrist) actually smells more like what I expected THIS one to smell like -- sweet peas! Weird. And yes, I remember which wrist I put each one on.

 

I'll have to try it again alone.

[Dracoo9]

When I first recieved this imp from the lab in December I wasnt impressed with it at all but I hung on to it. In four months' time it is now incredible! I can smell the sweet pea now when originally I couldnt. The vanilla comes out more on the dry-down while the amber plays softly in the background while the sandlewood gives it a deep and warmer tone to it. MLST is trully amazing but I'm still debating its bottle-worthyness.

[aleciarivas]

Sad, sad me. Unfortunately this was very pretty for about 10 minutes- at which point all I could smell was baby powder. As a matter of fact, my oldest daughter sniffed near me later and frowned and said, "WHAT is that smell? Did you change a baby today?" I suspect that the sweet pea is my arch-enemy, because I really can't stand the smell of baby powder and that seems to rear its ugly head whenever I try sweet pea.

 

Grr... But it has been passed on to somone who loves it!

[Kelism]

The vanilla in this is a perfect vanilla for me - it isn't way overpowering and loud and it isn't foody. This is exactly what I wish the vanilla in Antique Lace would be ('cause maybe then I could wear it).

 

This has a nice creamy amber/light floral scent to it. It reminds me a bit of Jacob's Ladder, just a little lighter (I think Jacob's Ladder is more deep and more golden). I don't know what happened the first time I tried this, but I had thrown it in my swap pile. I decided to try it again and I am SO glad that I did. I will not swap it and I may get a bottle, I'm not sure yet.

 

When wet it has a slight bit of green to it, that faded as it dried. I'm not really familiar with sandlewood but I don't think I really smell much. For me it was a very light, creamy, soft vanilla and amber. There's just enough of the sweet pea to add a very slight white floral to it, but mostly it is creamy amber.

 

It's lasted quite awhile - at least 7 hours and I can still faintly smell it as I move around.

[hkhm]

imp: sweet pea with very light amber.

 

wet: this is a vanilla, sandalwood, amber mixture with a bare waft of sweet pea as an afterthought. the vanilla is steadily amping on my skin.

 

dry: the vanilla amps a little too much on me but it is nice with the sandalwood and amber, the sweet pea disappeared without a trace.

[seamor]

Delectable! A wonderful vanilla sweetness with an amber/sandalwood foundation. I wasn't able to pick out individual notes until I read the description, and then thought "Oh! Of course that's what that is!!!" Of course.

 

The sweet pea disappears almost immediately on me; naturally, being a flower note. The rest dries to a very stable, velvety, vanilla-sandalwood with a warm amber shimmer and a soft throw, and it stays on my skin for a long time - over eight hours! Nothing, literally nothing, has ever stayed with me that long before. (Except anise, but let's not darken our happy time with unpleasant memories ...)

 

I like this so much, and am so comfortable and happy wearing it, that every time I think of trying one of my other new imps I just end up putting on Mouse's Long and Sad Tale again instead. I haven't worn anything else for a couple of weeks, and ordered two 5 mls this morning.

 

Top three for me are now Mouse's Long and Sad Tail, Chrysanthemum Moon, and The Dormouse.

 

Beth, you just get better and better!

Edited April 12, 2008 by celtimor

[DogNPonyShow]

In the vial: Creamy vanilla.

On: Starts out a little foody, but morphs into a lovely warm vanilla amber. It's very calming, kind of like a comfort scent. Good throw and super staying power -- almost 5 hours later and it's still there! This is the first vanilla ever to not go plastic on me.

Verdict: Most definitely a keeper. I'll be picking up a bottle when the imp is gone.

 

ADDED May 5:

 

In the vial: Sweet and fruity.

On: Immediately turns to powder, but it's a sweet powder that I can stand. After a few minutes it becomes a murky powder.

Verdict: I had to try this since it is from Alice in Wonderland, but while it smells great in the vial, it doesn't work for me.

[Scanmike]

When wet this is very sweet for my taste. I does dry down to a lighter vanilla scent. Apparently it lasts long because after wearing it for 8 hours , a friend gave me a hug and said I smelled very good. I like it but prefer Antique Lace.

[evanescence]

Oh this is lovely. One of my first big bottles and just so vanilla-y and sweet. The throw is decent and even without reapplying, the scent lingers. Should be a buy for every newbie!

[sparkybish]

Lovely, creamy vanilla, which does remind me of high school smells, but in the best way. It's shot striaght into my Top 10!

[Raqassah]

Initial impression/ Wet: Sweetpea with amber and vanilla

Dry down: Sweet and generic floral.Not overpowering.

Final thoughts: Nice but not me??? Try again to determine. Frimp