NOTES by Nick Carvell

Nick Carvell spent his career in mainstream style journalism before going freelance in 2017: Social Media Editor at Mr Porter, Associate Style Editor at British GQ, and Editor of The Jackal, followed by bylines in the Observer, the Financial Times, Gentleman's Journal, the Telegraph and ELLE Decoration UK. He has also created branded content for fragrance houses including Jo Malone London and Brioni.

His Substack, NOTES, is billed as ramblings and recommendations on scents and style, and fragrance is one strand of a wider grooming, menswear and interiors newsletter rather than a fragrance-only publication. The recurring Spritz List feature rounds up monthly recommendations, and Carvell aims to publish at least weekly.

On trust: this is a generalist menswear and lifestyle voice with real mainstream-press pedigree rather than a fragrance specialist, so depth per scent is lighter than a dedicated critic's, and reviews sit alongside his wider style and grooming coverage. He has also made paid content directly for fragrance brands (Jo Malone London, Brioni), a disclosed but real commercial relationship worth factoring in when he covers those houses or close competitors. For a reader who wants scent recommendations folded into broader menswear and style taste rather than a standalone fragrance deep-dive, this is a credible, currently active source; for pure fragrance specialism, the more dedicated voices elsewhere in this directory go further.