F5

[gloom bear]

A refreshing scent! GET IT?! Aloe, white musk, lime peel, fresh mint, seaspray, verbena and green tea.

F5 is my new favorite! True to name, it is a refreshing scent that starts as a fresh lime peel. (Very much a lime peel scent vs. lime juice or fruit) After about 5-10 mintues, the lime peel mellows out a bit and a sweeter smell comes in making it a smooth and soothing scent. It starts to smell like Embalming Fluid, only better. I love it!

[Aredhel]

Rating (on skin): 2/5

Summarised in a word or two: Soap.

 

Pre-review thoughts: I really don't know how it will smell, but I'm hoping for a (white) musky mint.

 

In the bottle: Green tea and white musk! A good sign.

 

On skin, wet: A very faint mint, lovely white musk, and... lime. Damn it all. I don't like lime, at all. The green tea is already threatening to go soapy.

 

On skin, dry: And there it goes. Minty, just a bit musky green tea soap. The seaspray adds something almost salty to it, which is very interesting, but not exactly something I dig. I wish my skin could handle tea notes better.

 

Conclusion/Notes: Alas, F5 and I are not meant to be. Well, I'm sure my two bottles will find happy homes elsewhere.

[gingersnapp]

This started out very lime-y and cool, but as it's dried the musk warms it up a little bit and the green tea comes out. The seaspray is taking it to a soapy place, so I'm hoping that disappears a bit more as the day goes on.

 

The mint doesn't really pop on me at all, but they never really do.

 

I think I might let this one sit for a couple of weeks and give it a try again to see how it ages, if at all. I'd really like the tea to be stronger, and for it to not be so soapy.

[faifai]

This strikes me as decidedly masculine, in that delicious just-showered-lover smell it has. It's very fresh and starts off on my skin as a bit of lime and then it turns into a slightly soapy scent that I can't really describe the notes of. It's definitely got a pale blue-green vibe to it and I am going to give it to my SO in the hopes that maybe this will be the BPAL that he'll actually wear.

 

ETA: forget the SO! I kept this for myself. it's the ultimate in cleaaaaaaan smelling. over time it transformed into a crisp watery green tea scent. it'd be perfect as a professional work fragrance, also, because it isn't recognizeable as perfume. it just smells fresh and clean and non-sweet. it almost has a fresh salty ocean air vibe to it.

Edited February 21, 2007 by faifai

[Poenari]

My first limited edition bottle. I'm not even sure what prompted me to order it, because I'm more the patchouli incense type , but I'm so glad I did!

 

In the bottle- green tea and mint! For once, I can actually identify the scents that other people have described.

 

On my skin- fresh, soft, minty, mmhmmm, I like this!

 

Verdict- My bedtime Bpal is Blood, but once in a while I use a rosemary mint lotion instead. I'm really glad I bought F5, and I think it just might become my new bedtime Bpal.

[TrailerTrashPrincess]

so in the bottle and on my skin at first...

it smells like a mix of Dorian, Evening Star, House of Mirrors, Spirits of the Dead and just the eensiest bit of margarita or Absinthe... some light floral/glass notes

 

a little less fabric softener-y than Dirty, but a clean-happy-fresh scent.

 

i put it on a couple hours before i went to work, and it lasted all through an 8 hour shift and then some.

i finally figured out why it smelled familiar after about twelve hours, right before i washed it off....

i can't remember who made it but it might've been AirWick? anyway, a spray air freshener that i bought about two years ago -- it was in a matte silver "can" with a little round picture on it... it may've been "clean linen" or something like that... i'll see if i can't dig one up.

anyway, after about 12 hours, that's what this wound up smelling like on me.

nice and clean but still... air freshener. so i'll just hafta remember to refresh the oil after about eight hours before that comes back.

[lovelyza]

Citrus, mint and tea!!

 

I find that F5 is very very similar to Embalming Fluid...which is good because I had been meaning to get a 5ml of EF and now I have this lovely cool soothing tea minty citrus goodness! Though it is very refreshing, it's refreshing in a soft, soothing, calming way, not an in-your-face sort of way. It seems to fade pretty quickly on me, which is a shame...I'll have to try it in the room diffuser.

[em_h]

I got this one because I just really wanted to get a forum blend, and because Beth was so sweet setting it at the old price. These factors somehow overcame my knowledge that almost none of the notes in this actually succeed on my skin.

 

Wet: Top note is a rather nice, very light waft of lime, though with something kind of chemical underneath it.

 

Drying: Yeah, it's getting chemically and weird, as aquatics do on me.

 

Dry: Continues kind of chemical and fake-smelling. Ah well. It was a calculated risk that I knew probably wouldn't work out. I'm sure someone else will be happy to have this.

[PurringPulsar]

F5

 

In the bottle: very similar to Embalming Fluid, a fresh citrus tea, but with salty sea spray. With it's salty lime, it smells almost like a margarita (not a mojito yet, as I don't get the mint).

Wet on skin: it now smells like a fresh cologne type scent. Very upscale, very unisex.

Dry on skin: not bad! This is, as the description says, refreshing. The dominant notes are an Embalming Fluid like citrus tea with white musk, but this time it's the sharper smell of lime instead of lemon. Whoo, that's a lot of lime and verbena-this is very citrus. And I still get the margarita feel. I do get an ozone background which is very slightly reminiscent of clean laundry, but in a good way. This does have a very mainstream perfume scent to it but I don't mind that.

After a while: the 'clean laundry' scent does increase over time, but I like it in here. Overall, this scent is like a fresher, tangier version of Dirty…that same 'whiter than white linen' scent with an added citrus-tea zing to it, and less of the floral sweetness of Dirty. Thanks to the verbena-tea scent, it also reminds me of Shanghai.

At the end, the aloe comes out, joining the tea, musk and sea air notes.

Verdict: on me, this is like Embalming Fluid meets Dirty. The bright, sharp citrus tea and white musk of EF mixed with the laundered ozone of Dirty, this is a lively and zingy fragrance that does refresh! A tangy citrus tea with a hint of salty-lime margarita and a base of washed linen, this is a unisex fragrance which has something mainstream about it. It's a very energising scent, quite sporty in feel, and very clean. I like it-it's a great scent for warm weather, but I'm not sure if I'll keep it. I have other scents similar to it that I prefer. I may keep an imp's worth but I don't think I need the bottle.

Emoticon rating:

If you like this, try: Embalming Fluid, Dirty, Berenice, Shanghai

Edited September 28, 2006 by yeahbutnobut

[savage_rose]

Just got it today, and I had to see just how refreshing it was...

 

In the bottle: Lime sherbet...the good kind, with lime bits mixed in.

 

Wet: Delicious lime, almost a light creamy smell. I can barely detect the aloe, it just adds a light undercurrent to the lime. Delicious, cooling...that's the main keywords I'm getting.

 

Dry: Iced tea and with lemon/lime. A delicious summer day with something wonderful to anticipate. And the creaminess is still there...so I guess I would say it smells like iced tea with lemon/lime lotion. Mmmm...I love this scent. It's absolutely simple and light and wonderful.

[slave1]

In Bottle: Green tea and aquatic

 

On Skin: Wow, this is very crisp and fresh! The green tea comes forward right away, as it always does on me. My skin amps green tea like there’s no tomorrow. The seaspray gives a strong clean aquatic feel and the mint and lime are very sharp. The verbena offers a lemon feel, not as sweet as it normally is on me. The aloe gives it a nice smooth and alive feel. Lastly, the white musk (one of my favorite notes ever) layers it all in the most delicate sheet of softness. It’s a scent that seems a bit more masculine to be, but still “pretty”. The aquaticness and sharpness of this scent don’t seem to make me fall in love with this blend. I’ll probably want to keep an imp and swap the rest of the bottle. Medium throw and average wearlength.

[themerrybaker]

F5, Good Buddy.

 

The overall impression is a nice long shower after a long, grungy, day on the road.

 

12 - 50 Over and Out.

[Deiicide]

F5

 

 

Out of the Bottle: A citrusy but clean smell that has a faint background of tea. It reminds me of Kumiho and Enbalming fluid.

 

Upon the arm: Yep, definately reminds me of Kumiho and less of Embalming fluid. There is the trace of ozone and sea spray that I LOVED about Tempest. The aloe smooths it out though and the lime is a bit strong too.

 

5 minutes later: Still about the same except less strong. The ozone smell is starting to fade sadly.

 

20 minutes later: All the notes after awhile merge together into this second skin scent. It sticks very close and it would definately be good for those hots days that you want a little treat to cool yourself off. I can definately see how people would find it to be masucline because both the sea spray, aloe and green tea but while Kumiho's and Embalming Fluid's tea note seems to fade this one lasts a bit longer.

 

A great job all and in, and definately refreshing. :giggle:

[maijasu]

F5, in the bottle, reminds me a bit of men's cologne. It's sharp and bracing, very citrussy.

 

Wet on my skin, the mint comes out and the whole blend sweetens considerably. I like this stage the best. Refreshing, indeed!

 

It fades into a sort of unisex fresh cologne smell. It's very well done, and I probably would have used it a lot over the summer if I'd had it then. I'm very glad to have a bottle, but also very glad that I didn't give in to my hoarding instincts and order more than one.

[sarahmarie]

I've been hesitant to review F5, because I can't quite pin it down. I can't decide what it smells like or whether I like it! It is obviously a clean, refreshing scent -it just wears a bit floral on me (it's something teas seem to do on my skin). It vanishes quickly for me, as well. I'm going to hang on to this one for warmer days, and see how it feels to me then.

[juniperus]

Bottle: the citrus and tea are foremost, followed by the aloe (sunburn flashbacks commencing)

Wet: citrus and aloe, but joined by the mint - very fresh and light

Dry: the citrus is still present, but backing off enough to smell the tea again, and the aloe has also retreated somewhat.

Later: the aquatic note is making its appearance and I'm feeling it. *sigh* damn sinus reaction to aquatics, anyway. *cry*

[Honor]

This is going to be a tiny little short review becauuseeeeeeeee.... nm. Nothing I do is short. Ever.

 

 

F5 smells like the love child of Embalming Fluid and Absinthe.

 

From the notes and previous reviews I knew it would smell like an amped up EF, which is why I bought it..

 

In the bottle: Yup. EF.... with the faint whiff of lime and mint, but not strongly so. No "sea spray" here.

 

On my skin Wet: Embalming Fluid meet Absinthe...Absinthe meet Embalming Fluid. It's got the lemony-tea-musk smell of EF, with the lime and mint making it a bit "juicier" and "wet green". If "wet green" had a smell, this would be it.

 

Dry: The lime and mint have settled down and now it's a slightly muskier, minty version of Embalming Fluid....even the dry down is similar to what EF and Absinthe smell like on me.

 

So the good news is when it runs out I know how to make more!

 

Although I'm a bit dissapointed it didn't smell more....different.

Edited September 27, 2006 by HonorAlexandria

[QueenFae]

I truly love green tea scents, and this one is no exception. It is a very strong green tea note, and it smells almost exactly like Shanghai when first applied. It is very similar to Dragon moon and Holiday moon as well, though I had hoped for something a bit different. On the dry down, the lime, citrusey note comes out much more, and it becomes a subtle lime juice glazed over with a verbena tea note. All in all a lovely blend, just really similar to a few others I already have bottles of.

[flyingpizza]

After being disappointed by a few too-light scents with divine notes that didn't stay , I was pleased by the punch of F5. It isn't too sweet, it isn't too aquatic, it isn't too minty. It's the perfect fresh scent. It had a kind of fresh-linen quality without being soapy or perfumey, and it stayed all day. Very nice.

[Lorencita]

This is a lovely, fresh scent. I like the tinge of lime in it. It is very subtle though, I had to dump the whole bottle in a spray & mix it with some unscented dry oil spray. I do this with light scents, so I can put it all over my arms and legs. Good stuff, just a bit light for me

[storme]

In the imp: green tea, mostly and musk. Sharp, but not startlingly so.

 

On me, wet: verbena and lime and green tea and musk, soft and soothing citruses. This is not a wake-you-up refreshing, it's a keep-you-calm refreshing.

 

On me, dry: the aloe makes this feel like all those citruses are staying wet and fresh. Everything meshes here very well, but it's still more soft and less crisp than I expected, somehow.

 

Verdict: as a whole this is maybe a bit more soapy and a bit more boyish than I might otherwise wear. I may sneak this onto my SO when he's not looking, see how it works on him.

[eggplant]

This reminds me a lot of Bath and Body Works Cotton Blossom. I definitely get dryer sheets and mint here, and it's certainly a unisex scent. It's a pleasant scent, but not something I'd wear often, and I already have a favorite refreshing scent in Cheshire Cat. Off to the swaps.

[roesmoker]

I can't resist trying the forum-only's even though I knew there was no way F5 would work on me. But the name was so cute! And the "old-skool" price, adorable.

 

Sadly, I was right - F5 smells like a really nice men's deodorant on me, through and through. It's wicked strong, too. The other thing it reminds me of is CK One. Definitely masculine, probably some girls could wear it but not me .

Edited September 21, 2006 by roesmoker

[Dinah]

This is *exactly* what I hoped for - I think I'm in love

 

It's a sharp, fresh green tea with zingy, zesty lime in the background - definitely a pick-me-up on days when I feel sluggish and tired, and perfect for these reather hot late-summer days we've been having lately.

 

Lovely.

[Inanna9]

Ahh, that's what this reminds me of -- CK One (thanks, roesmoker ) without the alcohol smell, obviously.

 

Honestly, I didn't expect to like this because of the white musk, which is quickly becoming a nemesis of mine. But it isn't taking over (yet) and the verbena and green tea and lime are heavenly! Seriously, refreshing sums it perfectly. The only thing I'm not really catching is the mint, but I'll slather more next time and see if that helps. I went light in case the musk turned it to aftershave. This is nicely unisex though.

 

Fun scent!

Edited September 21, 2006 by Inanna9