51

[River]

Luminescent, glowing, and otherworldly: green mandarin, neroli, honeydew, white amber, guava, freesia, white and green musks hovering over desert scrub, smashed wood, and the dry, biting scent of night air over the Groom Lake salt flats.

Got this imp because... well, I'm a huge fan of The X-Files, so I couldn't resist.

Wet, this is very light and fruity. I love it!

Dry, it comes down a bit, but it's still very fruity and punchy, with just the slightest, most intriguing hint of what I can only imagine must be "alien musk" in the background (clever little devils, hiding behind the scrub!).

It doesn't have a long lifespan on me - about as long as it takes the mothership to take off again, I'm sure - but I can just keep dousing myself in it, no problem. Definitely bottle-worthy.

[mand]

Ozone with a floral undertone, great throw. Close to skin a sugary note

[swilde]

51 is salty tropical fruit- a very femme balance of bite and kiss. To my nose, there's the teeniest resemblance to Escada Sunset Heat but of course, much more pretty and natural. Love, love, love it!

Edited October 5, 2007 by swilde

[Lunaratu]

It starts smelling rather perfumey—in a light floral, fruity way. It’s kind of reminding me of Dream by the Gap from oh so many years ago—which was actually my first perfume ever so this is making me think it might be appropriate for a young teenager rather than a full grown woman. It sticks very close to that scent even through dry-down. However after awhile the white musk kinda starts to scream on my skin a bit around the other stuff and the scent becomes a tinge sharp though still floral and fruity. Not exactly for me.

Rating: 3.5/5

[Lethran]

I love this one even if it is a bit floral. It's a lot like Embalming fluid only a touch stronger and deeper. A definite winner.

[radishbaby]

In the Imp : Smells like guava.

 

Wet : I tried this before and had a vague memory of it turning pure salt on me but as so often I made no notes so now I'm starting fresh. So far there's still a lot of guava but the amber and musks are coming out a bit to produce an incredibly sweet scent. I know the description says night air but I think this smells a whole lot more like early morning to me.

 

Dry : The guava has finally taken a back seat, thank god, and now this is a very nice sweet perfume. The musk and amber seem to have settled in and neither one is too overpowering. I don't really get any "desert" from this though, oh well. A touch of mandarin has also surfaced.

 

Over All : Not what I remember, still not what I like.

 

Big Bottle Worthy : No. The scent is really lovely and it delivers as promised the listed scents but it just isn't my thing.

[lainevierge]

This one was thrown in as an extra with my last order. I tried it out a few times this summer but was really disappointed with how much it resembled commercial perfumes. I do agree that it doesn't go so far as to give me a headache like they do, and that there is something interesting about it, but it's certainly not something I'm interested in wearing.

[SarahScent44]

In the imp, this is warm, musk-ish, but still light and definitely fruity (mandarin, neroli). There's something clean and clear there as well.

 

On my skin, this is very clean and sweet - it's the clean air of the desert with a hint of all the fruit and the freesia. It's really beautiful.

 

When it dries, it's well-blended - there's no identifiable fruit notes, just clear, sweet air. It's very light, very subtle. But I like it a lot. Nice, nice, nice

[Emera]

IN THE IMP: A fruity-floral bath gel or shampoo.

ON MY SKIN: Same as above, for the first five minutes – it’s cute, sweet, and, well, clean, but not terribly interesting. Afterwards, it starts building more complexity. The fresh mandarin and honeydew are most noticeable, with a little rough edge (musks, wood?) and a tangy bitterness (neroli?) that keeps it from being boring or foody. I can definitely picture a clear desert sky with odd lights on the horizon when I sniff this.

LATER: This really is a “glowy” scent; it’s clear, airy, refreshing, and “colorful.” It’s deceptively simple, not strong in throw at all, but playful, a little bit quirky and unusual. This test was from a friend’s imp, but I might have to buy one of my own!

[jaeyne]

On me, at first it's all midori baby, and then it turns into something that reminds me of the smell I asociate with Okinawa, Japan. Sheiseido, maybe... but it's there. Okinawa.

[inurbanus]

When I think of "perfume", my mind comes up with something close to 51, which feels more commercial than most of the BPAL scents I've tried. This isn't a bad thing, and 51 is lovely, but be forewarned that there is a lot of scent packed into this 5 ml. This isn't one of those BPALs that comes in layers -- one me the notes are all mixed up in a cloud of fruits and flowers, so it's hard to pick out individual ones. I really wanted to smell the honeydew, but it wasn't in the cards. I'm disappointed in 51; based on the notes I thought it would be heaven on me. It's very good, but it doesn't have that special kick that my special favorites do. Still, it's close, and I know I'll enjoy wearing it.

 

4.5/5

 

ETA -- Some more thoughts:

 

I tried Fairy Market the other day, and it really reminded me of this, so when it came time for me to reassess this one, I kept it in mind. I think the thing is that they both remind me of sitting on our deck in the summer at sunset, watching the fireflies come out. There's something humid about 51 that I didn't mention in my above review -- it's really intensified by the way the notes heap on top of each other. I have to admit, I don't like the beginning of this (it's too bitter for me), but when the freesia comes and out the fruits mellow, it produces something absolutely lovely. This is one of those scents that memories are made of.

Edited June 14, 2008 by inurbanus

[hkhm]

imp: musk and amber over lots of sweet fruity/floral scents.

 

wet: i think it's the freesia i'm smelling most strongly along wih a faint aquatic. there's an almost tea-like green scent in here as well. very sweet/crisp. my husband really likes this on me (might have to buy a few bottles if he likes it when dry).

 

dry: sweet, light floral. my husband and i agree that this is bottle-worthy. i'm simply delighted to find another scent he actually likes on me!

[erraticprophet]

Initial Impression: honeydew melon

 

On Wet: citrus-y with melon undertones

 

On Dry: air, sand, mixture of fruity florals

 

Final Impression: This smells just like the dessert. Very clean smelling.

 

Rating (on a scale from 1-5): 5

[Leopard403]

Oh, my. I really didn't expect to like this one, but there is something... familiar about it.

It is clean, slightly aquatic, and sparklingly innocent. When I wear this I am eight years old again, carrying around my pink portable stereo and Debbie Gibson tapes.

 

ETA: I know what it smells like! Remember years ago, every Christmas season Love's Baby Soft perfume had a special holiday sampler with five different fragrances? This smells like the blue bottle did: Clean and green and fresh.

Edited January 16, 2008 by Leopard403

[CrazyPretzel]

Hm, I had this problem with the Dormouse too! Both are lovely, gossamer scents that I adore and my skin turns both of them into hotel soap. Actually it's not quite as bad with 51. It does end up having a certain complimentary toiletry air about it, but there are other things going on with it! Initially there's a sweet melon vibe and then later the musks come out; quite pretty. In the long drydown I can smell some light, smooth wood. It reminds me a little bit of The Ghastly Garden (Halloween LE).

 

I'll use up my imp - maybe in a scent locket.

[ymmat]

I was unsure about how 51 would work on me as I'm very wary of anything with even the slightest hint of floral.

 

In the imp, it smells pale green, light, but with a hint of mystery woven into it.

 

Wet, it smelled clean and light, but it did smell like perfume (none of the other BPAL scents have given me that impression until this one). However, it was a pleasant, barely there floral with slight fruity overtones that I actually liked. Unfortunately, within 15 minutes it was completely gone. There was no hint of anything left on my skin at all.

 

I'll probably try it again just to see if my body was having a particularly bizarre day, but yeah, weird.

Edited January 21, 2008 by ymmat

[Northernskygal]

51 is.. smiles in a bottle for me.. really.. this is a great scent to have on when I am at work, as it really helps me mantain an alright enough attitude (I work in retail, with morons.. it is not the most fun ever..) I can't even really describe the scent.. bright.. glowing.. cheerful.. not overly fruity or overly floral.. just.. happy. I need a big bottle of this, as I feel it will be worn often!

[spelmermaid]

51 is a very "cool" scent - it smells like fresh breeze with some cucumber crispiness and honeydew sweetness thrown in.

Moderate wear length and throw, a light scent that's suitable for more subdued occasions.

[crazyredhead17]

This is pretty!

 

Like other reviewers mentioned, it's hard to pick out individual notes, but I get wafts of sweet fruitiness, or wafts of salty air, or wafts of a very light floral.

 

This is definitely a scent for my more girlie days as it just has a wonderful flirty, happy vibe to it.

[gchris]

In Vial: mmmm, greeness of fruit with hint of sweet floral.

 

Wet: Green floral

 

Drydown: Not too sweet. Smells like fruit that is not quite ripe with floral adding the balancing sweetness. Very nice. The floral is coming out the strongest with greeness of the fruit wafting in the background.

[writergal969]

51 is another win in my book. This one knocks me off my feet!

 

In the vial I get fresh melon and a hint of ozone, as well as some light floral and what must be musk. Now, I've never really worn any of the lab's musk scents but this smells divine! It's enough to make me want to try more musks. It smells clean and crisp. This scent has a 'mysterious' vibe to it, it reminds me of something and I can never quite remember what.

 

On me this scent stays pretty true to the first sniff, though now I can grab hints of the amber and freesia better. I think this is an intoxicating blend. I can even catch hints of what I can only call 'salty air' and I love it. I like to wear this scent out on the town and get rave compliments every time. I think it's crisp, clean, and fragrant. It manages to keep up with me all night long, and I still have faint wiffs of heaven on my wrists in the morning too.

 

Overall, I'd give 51 a 5 out of 5! It's an amazing scent! Every time I wear it I fall more and more in love with it.

Edited February 23, 2008 by Shollin
Removed Lab description --Shollin

[DogNPonyShow]

In the bottle: Crisp green and sweet

 

On: Same as in the bottle, but the freesia and wood take turns being prominent. A nice light scent that's perfect for hot summer days. Great throw, but fades quickly.

 

Verdict: I absolutely love this! A bottle will be in my next order.

[grashopper8]

: -) An Area 51 perfume? Man I love BPAL....

 

This scent is fun, playful, and bright. It's got a greenness to it that isn't sharp or dirty-smelling, because it's balanced out by the fresh fruits.

 

51 reminds me of Kindly Moon more than any other BPAL.

 

It smells a little generic-perfumey, like Herbal Essences or B&BW Juniper - a fruity-floral. There's a clean musk that bridges the sweet herbal/hay/freesia notes with the juicy guava/melon fruits.

 

Cute! I probably like it enough to try the imp a few more times, but I'm not enamored any further than that. It's just so familiar! But still pretty.

 

3.6 out of 5

[delicate_fangs]

Hmm. Can't recall if I tried 51 before, but wore it today in case I hadn't. It started out all melon, with some guava there too, and something very green and flowery... except flowery-fruit, if you know what I mean. It was quite intriguing, but then my skin turned it into something sweet-but-boring. Sigh.

 

I think it's a bit too light and sweet for me. Still, a nifty scent, and probably perfect on someone else. To swaps and enabling goes the imp.

[iiinterstate]

At first I was a little disappointed...this seemed all fruit, which I like, but it was kind of flat and nondescript. Like if you took a lot of different melons and cut them up in a bowl. All the different nuances sort of cancel each other out.

 

About an hour after applying (to my skin and a little in my hair) I can smell wood and something green along with the fruity. Its still developing, but there is a lot of depth to 51, I just can't put a name to all the notes!

 

Verdict: so far its not love, but 51 is definitely intriguing. It deserves a few more tries for sure.