Have you seen the online gift exchange called “Secret Sister”? If you and 6 other women should choose to participate, you buy one gift for a stranger and in return you will receive as many as 36 gifts back. You may have gotten an email that reads summthin like this:
"Hi ladies! Are you interested in a holiday gift exchange? I don’t care where you live, you are welcome to join! I need 6 or more ladies of any age to participate in a Secret Sister gift exchange. You only have to purchase ONE gift valued at $10 or more and send it to ONE secret sister and you will receive 36 gifts in return!!! Let me know if you are interested and I will send the information! Please don’t ask to participate if you are not willing to spend the $10 as it would not be fair to the other participant."
Sister 1: [Name and address]
Sister 2: [Name and address]
It works like a chain letter. I received the instructions above with 2 names and addresses. Before I forwarded the letter to 6 other ladies, I was supposed to delete the name of sister 1, sister 2 now becomes sister 1, and I list myself as sister 2.
iight. Call me gullible, but I thought it was the nicest thing ever - to bless a total stranger, which is usual and customary for me. Just ask anyone standing outside of the bank every time I visit; someone asks to spare some change and I just give. It's in my nature. I don't ask too many questions, I just give because I have it to give.
I immediately wanted to participate and started recruiting my sister girlfriends on Facebook. Soon after, the hunt for the perfect gift was on and pop'n. I headed directly to Instagram, my plug for black owned businesses and started looking for something nice but impersonal that a stranger may like to receive as a surprise. I started looking through the businesses I already follow but may have not yet purchased from. And there it was... nail lacquer from Cure by Aleesha B.
I visited the website to assess my options. Immediately I saw a sale was going on and the colors just popped! Pinks and yellows and mint greens... I knew Ms. Aleesha was my kinda Philly girl. So I looked around the website a lil but more and landed on the about page.
Founded on biblical principles, Cure by Aleesha B is more than a polish. This is a brand that also gives back. I am a firm believer - every black owned business should have a community outreach component.
Seasonal colors are expected to roll out throughout the year including its Awareness Collection. The Awareness Collection is a group of nail lacquers named after and when purchased benefit four different women stricken with chronic illnesses – Lupus (Lupus Butterflies/lavender), Cancer (Precious Pink/pink), Multiple Sclerosis (My Strength/watermelon) and Heart Disease (Martha’s Heart/red). These life threatening diseases have no cure, hence the name Cure by Aleesha B.
I reached out to Aleesha and told her what I was looking for, my purpose and the possibility of writing about my experience on Minority Report. She sent me the entire Fall in Love collection and I could not have been happier! The line consists of Love at First Sight (red), Head Over Heels (green), Happily Ever After (blue), You Stole My Heart (taupe) which can be found on the company’s Instagram page. And You Stole My Heart did just that – this girl, heart… stolen!
At first glance, You Stole My Heart looks purple, but baby… this taupe is gorgeous. After I mailed the other three off to my Secret Sister, I took You Stole My Heart for a spin and decided to have it salon tested. I went to a YouTube event at the Google Offices in Washington D.C. and since I was in the Nation’s capital, I decided to find a black owned salon. I scheduled an appointment for a manicure and pedicure with Sevilla at Stuido Chique in NW D.C. where I was treated like family. (Stay tuned for Secret Sister - Part 2 | Studio Chique, Service Review )
How Did I Test Cure By Aleesha B.?
Ease of use
Drying time
By comparison with a different color on every other finger nail
Wear and longevity on day 7, 10, 14 after manicure and pedicure
First is important to know that Cure is “Five Free”. What is Five Free and why does that matter? Cure is 100% vegan and toxin free. It is a product that does not contain Formaldehyde, Toluene, DBP, Formaldehyde Resin, or Camphor. If you can’t pronounce it, more than likely you should not apply it to your skin where it can be absorbed into your blood stream. These toxins have been linked to cancer and even interfere with reproductive hormones.
With that being said, comparing Cure’s taupe You Stole My Heart to another known brand (that peachy color you see) that is not vegan showed glaring differences.
Ease of use - application was simple and no different than any other nail lacquer
Drying time – it dries like typical nail polish, within minutes and faster when fanned
By comparison with a different color on every other finger nail – I went about my daily living: folding laundry, washing hair, doing dishes, opening mail, etc. as you can see, Cure began to wear by Day 10 considerably more than the competition. This is due to the composition and the toxins in the non vegan lacquer that enables it to “last longer”
Wear and longevity on day 7, 10, 14 after manicure and pedicure – By my estimation, Cure would require re-application every 9-10 days for a diva to preserve her sexy. No one wants busted unkempt nails.
Cure by Aleesha B. is a phenomenal product. Yasss Dawling, absolutely PHE-NOM-ENAL. I literally could not stop looking at my cheetah print nails! Sevilla did the doggone thang! The pigments are vibrant. The lacquer does not bleed or streak and applies evenly on the finger nail. It is a drop dead gorgeous finish and gloss that is only enhanced with a clear top coat. The cube packaging makes for easy storage too. It’s the CURE for the common nail color.
So, did I end up getting 36 secret gifts from integral women? Chile’no. Not at all. I did get one gift – the cutest porcelain muffin pans and was grateful as if I had received 100 gifts! Most importantly, I was introduced to another great product from a black owned business that I know I will be supporting from here on out. If your polish is unhealthy or downright boring, Cure by Aleesha B. is exactly what you need.
If you have tried Cure by Aleesha B., let me know what was your favorite color! Send me some pics, tag me on IG. I wanna hear from you. #BeBlack #ThinkBlack #BuyBlack
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