Weekend Conversation Starters

[Messy Nessy Chic]   Your spell book awaits. Is there a better way to let your freak flag fly than by broomstick? We’re big on Halloween here at Messy Nessy Chic, and we’ve been getting in the “spirit” so to speak. We took a field trip to a [sleepy Cornwall village]( to meet its modern day witches, who taught us a thing or two about what it really means to practice magic. We also learned the ins-and-outs of “the Craft” through a few of [modern history’s greatest witches](, our ultimate muses du jour… And for an extra Halloween treat, why not join us again in the Paris catacombs for a screening of the [Rocky Horror Picture Show](. [Image]( And y’know what else pairs well with paganism? Pasta! In other news, today is World Pasta Day, and as luck would have it, we have a brand new eBook waiting for you in the Keyholders Library. Searching for the perfect Autumn getaway? [Don’t be a Tourist in Sicily](. And remember, we have a mounting treasure chest of [travel secrets for Italy in general]( inside our Keyholder Concierge “[Asked & Answered page](”. Pasta and Pagan parties – what more do you need? Now put on that Nina Simone record, “I Put a Spell on You” and start the weekend off right… [Nessy]   [Don’t be a Tourist in Sicily](  [a2020m20photo20181]( Sigmund Freud called it “the loveliest region of Italy: a stunning orgy of colors, scents, and lights…a great delight”.  [Continue Reading](   [Muse du Jour: A Closer Look at the Modern Witch](  [a2020m20photo20181]( We finally know what we want to be when we grow up. A forest dwelling, diadem wearing witch à la Patricia Crowther, Maxine Sanders, or Doreen Valiente. Never heard of them? Neither had we, until a trip to the Museum of Witchcraft & Magic gave us a crash course in “the Craft.  [Continue Reading](   [The Secret Art of Marbling](  [Screenshot-2019-08-20-at-12.00.32-930x598]( It’s the DIY to rule them all: marbling. As in, those hypnotic patterns you find inside antique books, posh stationary, and packaging where it seems as if the whole of the colour spectrum has been syphoned through a kaleidoscope and poured onto a piece of paper. So what’s the story behind the painstaking craft?  [Continue Reading](   [How the World’s First Floating Hotel ended up as a Doomed Wreck in North Korea](  [1530149868217]( We’ll file this one under “Things that ended up in North Korea”. When it first opened in 1988 on Australia’s Great Barrier Reef, it promised “paradise at sea”; a floating seven-storey mega structure with nearly 200 rooms, nightclubs, bars, restaurants, a helipad, a tennis court and a 50-seat underwater observatory. Within a decade, it would be…  [Continue Reading](   [A Field Trip to Meet the 21st Century Witches of Cornwall](  [41009379835_00bcbe4b7e_o]( At a glance, it’s just another postcard perfect village in North Cornwall. But delve deeper into the misty valley of Boscastle, and you’ll find it harbours a special kind of magic. Literally. “There are legions of witches across Britain,” says Simon Costin when we ring him for a chat, “Or people who identify as witches…  [Continue Reading](   [The Not-So-Lost World of the Parisian Salon](  [LB-4]( Once upon a time, in a pre-smartphone world, people had to make their own entertainment. And so enters the salon, an Italian-influenced tradition of gathering of artists, writers, musicians, dancers, philosophers and intelligencia that flourished during a period known as the ‘age of conversation’. Dating back to the 17th century, guests would assemble in the…  [Continue Reading](   [13 Things I Found on the Internet Today (Vol. CCLXXIV)](  [tumblr_pzcntxB9pe1xlqhgno1_1280]( 1. Waiting room with TV sets at Greyhound bus station, Los Angeles, USA, 1969 Found here.  [Continue Reading](  Interested in Becoming a MessyNessy Keyholder? [Apply now to unlock the Vault!](    [Facebook]( [Twitter]( [Instagram]( [LinkedIn]( [Blog]( [To read more from MessyNessyChic visit the Blog]( and make sure you keep getting these email by adding contact@messynessychic.com to your address book or whitelist us. Our postal address: In a Café, Paris 75001 Want out of the loop? [Unsubscribe](.