We took the Liberty of Scouting the Perfect East Coast Winter Weekend Escapes for You

We take our motto, “Don’t Be a Tourist in New York,” very seriously – which is why we’re taking our own advice this November. Fall has arrived, Central Park is ablaze with shades of yellow, red and orange, but you’d be doing yourself a huge disservice if you didn’t venture out of town to see…

There might be a Secret Painting Hiding in that Old Book of Yours

Books can be magical things, but some as it turns out, may be more magical than others. They might look like ordinary old books, but they’re hiding a curious little secret in plain sight. A fore-edge painting is a scene painted on the edges of the pages of a book; invisible when closed. The technique…

13 Things I Found on the Internet Today (Vol. CCLXXVI)

1. Nylon Vending Machine in the Paris Metro, 1955 Print available from the RATP website. 2. The Instagram Account of a Pigment Collector At her cabin in the woods of Washington, Heidi Gustafson is creating a many-colored library of one of mankind’s first pigments. Heidi Gustafson, found on Instagram. 3. A Beguiling “Secret Garden” Apartment…

60 Seconds Inside a Paris Coven

Meet Xenia Rybina, the Parisian witch you never knew you needed in your life. Her artistic talents range from fashion illustration to stop-motion animation; esoteric embroidery to straight-up witchcraft. Which, she explains, gets a bad rap. “Let me tell you something, we are all witches,” she tells us from her Paris apartment, snake in hand.…

Did Glam Rock Wrestling Give Bowie and Elton Their Style?

Before Ziggy played guitar, Adrian Street pounded the ring (and the makeup counter) in silver tights. The pro-wrestler changed the game forever in the 1960s when he decided the game needed more panache. More glitter. More glam. He emerged from his chrysalis, that of the former coal miner and man’s man that he was, like…

The Vault

The Paris Off-Beat Winter Guide

Here in the Northern Hemisphere, it’s that time of year again; the days are getting shorter, the clocks have gone back, the rusty leaves are floating off the trees, everyone’s shoulders are moving ever so closer to their ears, and the heaters on the terraces have gone back to their reassuringly glowing red. We might…

Pssst! You've stumbled across content that is exclusive to Nessy's Keyholders.

There’s a new way to access the really special stuff from Messy Nessy Chic …

Hidden beneath the surface layers of the internet, there’s a place where we keep our most secret addresses, untapped archives, creator’s inspiration, collector’s guides, explorer’s manuals, obscure research and much more… And it’s made for our keyholders only!

Apply now to unlock the Vault

Keyholder Login

A Haunting Compendium of Paris Ghost Stories

Paris may be the City of Light, but it is filled with dark corners. Some of the best-known ghost stories were inspired by the very real, gory history of this otherwise romantic setting. Behind – and, indeed, beneath – the picturesque Haussmanian facades lurk countless tragic tales, the protagonists of which are still said to…

The Paris Dandy Bringing Back Art Nouveau with a Bang

You know Pierre Marie, even if you don’t think you do. You know the arabesque curves of his tiles, the vegetal motifs reminiscent of Guimard and Rousseau. You know the feel of his rattan and tapestry creations as if they came from your great aunt’s attic. You know his universe, because it’s one in which…

13 Things I Found on the Internet Today (Vol. CCLXXV)

1. Oh, just a Floating Bed in the Ocean Los Angeles–based artist Ariana Papademetropoulos’ new body of work, “Just Like Arcadia” highlights and explores the way the natural becomes mediated and conceptualized through domestication, locating interiority as a key in understanding the process in which mythologies and histories are created and perpetuated. View this post on…

Don’t be a Tourist in Sicily

Sigmund Freud called it “the loveliest region of Italy: a stunning orgy of colors, scents, and lights…a great delight”. Searching for the perfect Autumn getaway? Look no further, because our latest eBook from the Keyholder’s Library is here! Start planning your trip to Sicily now.