Alcohols can be found in lots of hair products and although some Alcohols are seen as good ingredients not all are good for your hair. Here we take a look at what alcohols to avoid when doing the curly girl method and why.
What are Drying alcohols?
What are drying alcohols and why should we avoid them? Drying alcohols do exactly what they say, they dry your hair. When you are doing the curly Girl Method it is important to use products with ingredients to complement your curls. Curly hair needs moisture to hold a curl it also needs protein. Drying alcohols found in curly hair products strip the hair of this essential moisture thus straightening curls and damaging hair. That is why when doing the curly girl method we do not use products which contain Silicone, Waxes, drying alcohols or parabens.
See which silicones to avoid here!

Drying Alcohols to Avoid in CG Method
The following alcohols are found to be drying and should be avoided.
- Isopropyl alcohol (also called IPA)
- Denatured alcohol ( denat )
- Ethanol
- Isopropanol
- Propanol
- Propyl alcohol
- SD alcohol 40
Look out for the words denatured, denat, eth, propyl or prop in the name as drying alcohols often contain these in the name.
Use this to identify bad alcohols to avoid when out shopping.

Why are these alcohols drying?
Lets look at some of these alcohols and why we do not want them on our hair.
Short-chain Alcohols such as ethanol, isopropyl alcohol, and alcohol denat are used as preservatives in skin and hair products. They are also often used to make skin care formulas dry quickly on your skin and help reduce excess sebum and oils on skin and scalp. Therefore this shows the drying effect they have.
Denatured alcohol is basically methylated spirits which is created using petroleum based ingredients. It is used in cleaning agents it is also not safe for human consumption. It is therefore considered a toxin
Safe Alcohols Found in Curly Hair Products
These Long chain alcohols are considered safe and are often found in your hair products such as conditioners.
Safe alcohols such as stearyl alcohol, and acetyl alcohol are derived from natural ingredients and fats like vegetable oil and nuts. The fat rich alcohols are found in healthy fats such as coconut and they are are generally used as emulsifiers and thickeners in hair and skin care products.
These fatty alcohols can actually be beneficial to you hair and skin as they have protective moisturising properties.
- Cetyl alcohol
- Cetearyl alcohol
- Behenyl alcohol
- Stearyl alcohol
- Myristyl alcohol
- Lauryl alcohol
- Lanolin alcohol
Further curly girl hair care reading
Bentonite clay wash for cleansing hair!
Rice wash to add protein to hair
Super saver drugstore curly girl products free from Silicone and Alcohol
Thanks for reading my Alcohols to avoid in curly hair.
D x
Nur
Wednesday 9th of June 2021
Just for knowledge: Isopropyl alcohol and isopropanol are exactly the same substance. Likewise, propanol and propyl alcohol are the same, as well. In chemistry, it is common to call one chemical with different names, but structurally and chemically they are the same.
Hehe
Friday 26th of March 2021
For some reason when I use a drying alcohol it makes my hair look better than when I use the good ones. The good ones made my hair so greasy and heavy to the point where I felt like I was touching an egg. I'm new to curls and I have really thin hair. My curls are very loose to the point of being wavy. What do I do?
Minahil Adnan
Friday 28th of August 2020
is the tresemme curls hydrate conditioner cg approved and friendly?
likelovedo
Monday 28th of September 2020
Hi I just checked and it has silicone in it x
Helen
Friday 17th of April 2020
hi there, I'm trying to figure out if the Trevor Sorbie Tame and Define firm hold curl cream is CGM approved - I can't see any other 'bad' ingredients listed on the back. Have you tried this one and do you know if it is approved? thanks a million! Helen
likelovedo
Sunday 3rd of May 2020
sorry I missed this, Unfortunately it contains silicone so is not cg friendly x