Breast cancer couldn’t stop me from creating my dream beauty brand. A geopolitical conflict couldn’t stop me from launching it. If anything, both experiences clarified exactly the kind of beauty I felt called to create.
The Path That Led Me Here
Six and a half years ago, on a warm sunny day in July, I visited my aunt’s psychic, who told me I’d have a beauty column in Cosmo ME that December. I thought that was strange as I was in the middle of a broadcast journalism program and wanted to be in front of the camera, not behind a computer screen.
However, it made sense as I’ve always been the go-to for everything in beauty. “I trust your recommendations” is a sentence I’ve always been told. Even back in grade seven, classmates asked me if they should buy Cover Girl or Maybelline compact powders. I was an influencer before influencers even existed.
Sure enough, December rolled around, and I was invited to the Cosmo ME beauty awards. The first time ever being invited to anything Cosmo ME-related. With a bit of cosmic grace, manifestation, and a healthy dose of self-advocacy, I left that party securing a spot writing beauty pieces for the magazine. That led to becoming the Beauty Editor.
You may be wondering, where does launching a beauty brand come into play? For me, it’s always been there. My childhood wasn’t exactly the carefree, emotionally expressive upbringing many of my Dubai friends imagine when they think of the United States.
My parents were strict and deeply practical. To them, my future looked like engineering, not beauty. In my uni days, I often dreamed of being a news anchor, TV personality, beauty editor, and beauty brand founder while studying subjects like thermodynamics and differential equations.
I believe life is like a GPS. It doesn’t matter how far off course we go from our intended path; we somehow always manage to reroute back to where we’re meant to go. As I began realigning while building a career in beauty editorial, there was a quiet knowing, deep inside, that I had to create my own brand. It felt part of my destiny.
Everyday, opening my inbox inspired me. Press releases covering makeup, skincare, haircare, and fragrance launches were aplenty. I analysed (and some could argue overanalysed) products, packaging, ingredients, textures, and performance.
Interviewing beauty brand founders felt like getting a backstage pass into the inner workings of minds I deeply admired. Without fully realising it, I was conducting brand and product research through the lens of a beauty editor.
It became very apparent to me that the more immersed I became in the beauty industry, the more I realised I didn’t want to only write about products and attend beauty events. I couldn’t ignore the urge of the creative energy to launch my own.
The Birth of 3 of Cups
When I began working on my own beauty brand concept, it was as if a floodgate of ideas had been opened. It needed to be intentional, emotionally intelligent, and unmistakably mine. I thought of its name, 3 of Cups, while driving down Sheikh Zayed Road. I love tarot, and the 3 of Cups card, which shows three women dancing in a circle, with their chalices high in the air, is my favourite card.
It represents celebration, joy, abundance, and healing through women. The latter could not have been more appropriate, as I was diagnosed with stage two breast cancer during my brand’s creation. What felt like a major roadblock turned out to be the white space I needed to dive even deeper into my brand’s identity and purpose. What emerged was the birth of its first product and an innovative new way to mask.
Creating The Shower Mask
The idea of an in-shower mask had been on my mind for a few years. I’m a mum of two, busy as anything, and rarely have time for a sheet mask. Plus, I try to avoid single-use items because I do my best to live as eco-friendly as possible. I found during treatment that the shower was where I had my deepest thoughts and felt the most comforted. I knew I had to bring this vision to life.
Whilst going through chemotherapy, I went through around 50 iterations of The Shower Mask with my lab in France before finally creating the perfect formula. Its creamy texture was specifically designed to stay put in a warm, steamy shower, transforming a few otherwise forgettable minutes into a restorative skincare ritual.
Applied to damp or wet skin, it softens, smooths, and deeply hydrates in just three to five minutes, making it ideal for busy women who want skincare that emotionally and practically fits into real life.
I’ve seen so many beauty brands come and go, and know that today’s beauty consumer isn’t just looking for transformation. She’s looking for products that emotionally fit into her life. The Shower Mask is only the first of many products for 3 of Cups.
My brand isn’t about perfectionism or becoming someone else’s idea of beauty. It’s about helping women feel more grounded, comforted, and connected to themselves through modern beauty rituals. I even have an affirmations page on my brand’s website.
I’ve seen so many beauty brands come and go, and know that today’s beauty consumer isn’t just looking for transformation. She’s looking for products that emotionally fit into her life. The Shower Mask is only the first of many products for 3 of Cups.
My brand isn’t about perfectionism or becoming someone else’s idea of beauty. It’s about helping women feel more grounded, comforted, and connected to themselves through modern beauty rituals. I even have an affirmations page on my brand’s website.
Beauty as Restoration
I believe beauty has nothing to do with becoming someone else. It’s truly about finding your way back to yourself. My dream is to grow 3 of Cups and use its profits to fund other women’s breast cancer treatments. Much like the 3 of Cups tarot card itself, the brand is rooted in the belief that there is power, healing, and abundance when women come together and uplift one another.
Shop The Shower Mask at 3ofcups.com.