New Wonderlands Collection: Finding Wonderland in a Broken World

Part 2: Down the Rabbit Hole: Step into the Wonderlands Collection

The Wonderlands Collection is launching August 9, 2025 on National Book Lovers Day.

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“The past, for example, is filled with repeating cycles of strength and weakness, wisdom and stupidity, empire and ashes. To study history is to study humanity. And to try to foretell the future without studying history is like trying to learn to read without bothering to learn the alphabet.”― Octavia E. Butler, A Few Rules for Predicting the Future

If you’ve been feeling overwhelmed, frightened, heartbroken, or uncertain lately, you’re not alone. That heavy feeling you carry likely means you’ve been paying attention. 

As I’ve grown older and my work has evolved, I keep returning to a question:

How do I create art and jewelry talking about pursuing Dreams and Wonderlands while so many people are denied the chance to dream at all? Maybe you’ve asked a question like this as well.

So, how do you dream or build wonderlands in a broken world?

"You can't help it. An artist's duty, as far as I'm concerned, is to reflect the times…At this crucial time in our lives, when everything feels so desperate. When every day is a matter of survival, I don’t think you can help but be involved." — Nina Simone

In the U.S., immigrants are being targeted and detained in growing ICE raids, often without due process. LGBTQ+ and trans people face relentless political attacks, and disabled people are losing access to essential care.

Public education is under attack through book bans, censorship, and eliminating children’s access to diverse perspectives and safe learning environments. Access to public broadcasting and libraries are increasingly under threat. Healthcare is becoming harder to access and gun violence continues to tear through communities. Disinformation, hate crimes, and rising extremism is deepening divisions.

And while the American Dream has always been out of reach for many (especially Indigenous, Black, brown, disabled, LGBTQ+, immigrant, and working class communities), it feels like it’s becoming an even higher walled fortress that keeps most people out. Everywhere, the most vulnerable are being stripped of basic rights as the rich get richer and the poor get poorer.

And beyond U.S. borders, humanitarian crises rage on. From civilians being starved, denied aid, and relentlessly bombed in Gaza, to the violence in Sudan and Congo, to the devastation in Ukraine. And the worsening climate crisis magnifies it all and compounds suffering.

These are not disconnected events.

What we’re seeing is a world being shaped by the powerful few at the cost of our humanity. In times like these, choosing empathy, compassion, and connection isn’t a weakness. It’s a necessity to remember how we are all connected to one another on this earth.

And that is the heart behind the Wonderlands Collection. To help us remember, protect, and nurture the dream of a world where we still care and uplift one another.

“Love has never been a popular movement. And no one's ever wanted, really, to be free. The world is held together, really it is held together, by the love and the passion of a very few people. Otherwise, of course, you can despair. Walk down the street of any city, any afternoon, and look around you. What you've got to remember is what you're looking at is also you. Everyone you're looking at is also you.”― James Baldwin

When hope feels far away, it’s often writers, artists, and creatives who help us imagine safer, more beautiful futures in hopes of reconnecting us to our shared humanity. I don’t know if my art manages to do that for anyone, but I know I just have to try.

Like my first Dreamer Collection (2025), the Wonderlands Collection (2025) has been a long time in the making. Launching August 9th on National Book Lovers Day, the Wonderlands Collection is an offering of protective and story-rich jewelry. It’s full of small but powerful pieces designed as everyday armor for Dreamers navigating an increasingly fractured world where so many are denied even the right to dream. 

And while I'm most known for my historically-inspired fantasy armor and wearable art, this expansion into jewelry with this second collection release still honors my mission to make art and jewelry for Dreamers who make magic happen.

What began as fantastical armor for the body has transformed into intimate and meaningful pendants and talismans meant to shield the soul.

Created in collaboration with my sister and art toy designer, Fiona Ng, the Wonderlands Collection holds a very special place in my heart. We created it together as siblings, best friends, and creative companions who understand and challenge each other every day. And we've learned it's about being imperfect and reflecting on what it means to build a sense of wonder and imagination within yourself, with others, and the world we share.

Before I introduce the art and jewelry launching this collection, I’d like to invite you to pause and think back.

“You think your pain and your heartbreak are unprecedented in the history of the world, but then you read. It was books that taught me that the things that tormented me most were the very things that connected me with all the people who were alive, who had ever been alive.” ― James Baldwin

Can you remember the first time a story really swept you away?

Maybe it was a book, a film, a cartoon, or even a memory of someone telling you a story that has stayed with you. Something that opened up your imagination, made the world feel magical or at least a little more bearable.

How or what did that story inspire in you?

Maybe that story inspired you to sketch, write, or play. Maybe it gave you joy, courage, curiosity or comfort. Or perhaps that story helped you survive and feel less alone.

For me, the stories that stuck were always the ones filled with gentleness, hope, and quiet strength, perhaps because they were what I needed most during a lonely and confusing childhood.

As I shared in my March 2025 blog posts, For the Dreamers Who Feel Lost (part 1) and For The Ones Told They Weren’t Enough: How the Dreamer Collection Honors You (part 2), I often felt like I didn’t belong at school or out in the world. My sister Fiona, just 11 months younger, struggled too.

Since childhood, we faced bullying, othering, microaggressions, racism, xenophobia, sinophobia, and were treated as perpetual foreigners despite being American-born Chinese. While it felt isolating, we were lucky we had each other.

When we felt invisible, Fiona and I leaned on each other. And when everything felt too heavy, we turned to stories for warmth, art for wonder, and dreams of something better.

Preserving childlike wonder: inspirations for the Wonderlands Collection.

"So I was unable to write anything for a long time. And so during that process, I went back to look at children's stories I used to read to my daughters when they were little, to see if I can discover some sort of source of comfort. And what I realized is this. The stories we tell our children…are in some way stories that embody our most treasured values, right?...We don't explain what courage or patriotism is to children by reading them a dictionary definition. We do so by telling them a story about somebody being courageous, somebody being patriotic, somebody being just and merciful, and so on and so forth. Stories are how we pass on values, not abstractions." — Ken Liu 

Our earliest wonderlands came from books, VHS tapes, and outdoor play. If we weren’t rewatching Alice in Wonderland (1951), Winnie the Pooh and the Honey Tree (1966), or Disney’s Sing-Along Songs: Heigh-Ho (1987), we were flipping through our beloved Pooh's Library: The Color Editions box set.

Trips to the library were some of our earliest great adventures. We’d comb through the children’s section, hunt for beautiful book covers, and take water fountain breaks before proudly checking out our next stack of books with our very own library cards. The librarian always made us feel like we belonged.

Our world was also shaped by shows like Mr. Rogers’ Neighborhood, Reading Rainbow, Animaniacs, The Golden Girls, Full House, Family Matters, Star Trek, and Xena. And between long work weeks, our parents would surprise us with new VHS, VCD, or DVDs of shows or movies they’d pick up from Manhattan’s Chinatown. It was often whatever they could find with Studio Ghibli, Steven Chow, Chow Yun Fat, Leslie Cheung, Michelle Yeoh, Tony Leung, Jet Li, Andy Lau, and more. One of our favorites was Journey to the West (1996), with the Monkey King’s epic adventures and magical companions.

At first glance, these Eastern and Western stories may seem worlds apart. But they all gave us the same gift: flawed and curious characters stumbling their way through fear, failure, and the unknown.

They faced hardships with hope, solved problems together, and found magic and wonder in the tiniest moments. They reminded us that adventure is messy, connection is precious, and that kindness is never weakness.

We wanted to embody that gentle and curious spirit in our new Wonderlands Collection, launching August 9th for National Book Lovers Day.

"Cats and rabbits
Would reside in fancy little houses
And be dressed in shoes and hats and trousers
In a world of my own

All the flowers would have very extra special powers 
They would sit and talk to me for hours
When I'm lonely in a world of my own

There'd be new birds 
Lots of nice and friendly howdy-do birds
Everyone would have a dozen bluebirds
Within that world of my own

I could listen to a babbling brook 
And hear a song that I could understand
I keep wishing it could be that way
Because my world would be a wonderland"

— "In a World of My Own" is a song sung by Alice, in the 1951 Disney animated feature film, Alice in Wonderland 

This Wonderlands Collection mini release includes (in bronze and sterling silver):

Favorite Book Pile Pendant:

Who doesn’t have a favorite pile of books or a little stack of favorite things you just don’t want to put away? This pendant honors that sentiment and the quiet joy of holding onto the stories, dreams, and objects that moved you.

When you flip the book pile pendant over, you also discover a hidden wonderland of blossoming magical flowers. It’s a reminder of that amazing feeling when your imagination blooms with every page turn. Because when we read, we’re not just taking in stories and worlds. We’re expanding our own.

Piano Music Book and Piano Keys Pendants:

Have you ever wished you could step inside a book? That’s a thought we always had growing up and we wanted our first book portal to be peering into a little world of music. On one side, it’s a tiny piano music book. On the other side, it reveals a miniature piano key portal, symbolizing how music can open doors for the imagination.

But of course, we also needed a set of mini piano keys on its own for Hawthorn the Rabbit Guardian (jewelry dish) to play on. The details on the piano music book cover and the back of the piano keys are inspired by the carved music desks of 19th and 20th century pianos.

To us, the piano has always been the soul of so many soundtracks for film or for our lives. This piece is also a tribute to our family’s piano legacy. In the 1970s, our maternal grandparents brought their piano studio from Hong Kong to Queens, NY. Our grandfather built pianos and our grandmother built community. After they passed, the rest of our family carried that torch in our own ways. Our hope is that this piece reminds you of the soundtracks that inspire your life and your journey.

Rabbit Guardian Pendant:

Hawthorn the Rabbit Guardian is the gentle companion for all your big and small adventures. Especially the ones that take you deep into your thoughts. Whether you’re diving into a book, wandering into a new idea, or simply sitting in silence, Hawthorn is a companion who’ll keep watch when you need a quiet kind of strength.

Inspired by Alice in Wonderland’s White Rabbit (and the "Drink Me" potion bottles, which inspired the Vessel of Hope Potion Pendants in the Dreamer Collection), this pendant merges whimsy, introspection, and exploration. Hawthorn was especially meaningful for Fiona, who was born in the Year of the Rabbit (I was born in the Year of the Tiger). We’ve always dreamed of creating rabbit and cat companions that felt like protectors that remind us we’re never truly alone.

Prunus Flower Pendant:

This pendant is inspired by the kinds of delicate treasures we saw in Chinese curio shelves, which often included carvings, books, teapots, and keepsakes that felt like small pieces of a larger story. The “prunus” flower (often associated with plum blossoms in Chinese culture) symbolizes endurance, hope, and the beauty of fleeting moments.

Blossoming even in winter, the prunus is the first to bloom before the leaves return, marking the end of harsh seasons and the beginning of something new. We hope this piece brings you a similar quiet strength and reminds you that even after struggle, there is still beauty, growth, and renewal.

Rabbit Guardian Jewelry Dish (to keep watch over your treasures):

Is Hawthorn the Rabbit Guardian reaching out to comfort you or reaching up to the stars? Maybe they’re doing both and want both for you too. They’re also here to protect and enjoy your jewelry treasures on your behalf.

This jewelry tray was actually inspired by a memory of Fiona’s first day in kindergarten. On her first day, teachers sent for me (a scared 6-year-old) to comfort my crying 5-year-old sister. As her classmates snickered and stared at us, I still remember her taking my hand as I gently placed my other hand on her head. While we felt alone surrounded by all those stares, we had each other.

Not everyone has a safe space or person to lean on, and many people’s dreams are interrupted before they even begin. This little Rabbit Guardian is a small reminder that you matter and you deserve someone who has your back.

Dreams & Wonderlands Gift Bundle:

Back when I started Lumecluster in 2012, I used to draw a lot of dreamy landscapes and surreal worlds in black ink. But as my art evolved, I assumed those early works no longer had a place. Until Fiona said, “Why do you think you have to leave these behind? I still see those wonderlands in everything you make.” That reminder helped me reconnect with my beginnings and see my work with new eyes.

This gift bundle is a reminder to think back to wherever you started and appreciate the unexpected twists and turns you’ve taken on your own journey. It’s a reminder that nothing is ever wasted and that there's always a new way of seeing things.

Overall, while the Wonderland Collection celebrates childlike wonder and whimsy (at any age!), it also honors the power of dreams, stories, and empathy in a time when these things are being silenced or erased. 

In the end, the real magic of Wonderlands lies not in escaping reality, but in daring us to imagine and build better ones.

While writing this, I couldn’t help but think back to a recent video I saw of a young child asking Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez a question on how they can help make the world a better place: 

Raine (9 years old): “My question is, what can kids do to help make the world fair for everyone, even if we’re not old enough to vote?”

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez: “You might be hearing and seeing a lot of stuff on television and radio and…they may be talking about different kinds of people in mean ways. And sometimes I think adults don’t realize that the way they talk trickles down and affects the way that kids talk. And I think that one of the most important and powerful things that you can do is if you see someone being bullied, to stand up for them. And if you see someone that feels alone, to go talk to them, or if you see a kid whose lunchbox doesn’t look like your lunchbox, to share with them. As much as what adults can do can trickle down to kids, a lot of times what kids can do can trickle up to change adults.” 

I want this collection to be a reminder that when we protect our own dreams without trampling on others, we start to build something much bigger than ourselves. We start to build real worlds worth living in together.

And when we build wonderlands together, we open ourselves to new perspectives, unexpected connections, and shared visions for a more compassionate world.

<3 Melissa

P.S. Don’t forget to check back here on August 9th (National Book Lovers Day) for new Photo Stories, free gift, and more with the the Wonderlands Collection release. Don’t worry, I’ll send you another email about it!

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