If you have read even a little bit about wavy, curly, or coily hair, you have probably heard of Kinky-Curly. A cult favorite, I had seen so many people rave about KCKT (Kinky-Curly Knot Today) and KCCC (Kinky-Curly Curling Custard). I really never even considered buying any of their products for myself and actually ended up buying one first for my daughter. Even though she has thin, straight, European hair, every morning the top part of her hair was just a rat's nest. It would take lots of tears and frustration to get it combed every morning and I was constantly threatening to just cut it all off. So in desperation, I bought the KCKT for her because it was supposed to be amazing.
About Kinky-Curly: On my page about Kinky-Curly, you can read more about their company and read my product reviews. I have reviewed other companies and their products as well and you can find those on my complete list.
YouTube: Check out my video on KCKT and be sure to subscribe to my channel!
Disclaimer: Per FTC regulations, I am disclosing that I use affiliate links. I will earn a commission if you decide to make a purchase after clicking through the links. It is a way to support my blog at no additional cost to you. You can read more here.
I bought both the KCKT and the KCCC. I looked at the ingredients and thought ooooo, natural! Must be good! This product is cruelty-free and has some organic ingredients as well. It works so well. The knots would literally melt away and detangling my daughter's hair no longer was a nightmare. I absolutely loved this product. The slippery elm and marshmallow root seemed to work like magic.
However, a few months later, I decided to clean up my act and go through the bath and body products that I had. This has phenoxyethanol, which was something I decided I wanted to avoid. In addition, somehow I came upon someone saying that KCKT really wasn't all it was cracked up to be due to the ingredient list. They said it was missing water and upon further investigation, I came upon The Natural Haven and read through their post on it. It started to make sense. You look at other hair products and one of the first ingredients is usually water or aloe. KCKT had an extract as the first ingredient.
Kinky-Curly states that their products don't have alcohol, so let's look at another example. Tea is a water-based extract. How do you make tea? Well, it depends on how much of a connoisseur you are. I make tea by boiling water and then pouring it over a tea bag (sorry, I know, fresh tea leaves are better, one day I will get there). I wait a few minutes without bouncing the tea bag up and down. Then I take the tea bag out and ta-da, tea!
Both of these have two ingredients: the substance and a liquid (either alcohol or water). So if reason and logic prevail, both those ingredients should go on the ingredient list. A good example of how this is done is with Saribelle Skincare Instant Facial Foaming Cleanser. This particular cleanser has both water and alcohol listed first; the extracts start coming after that.
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Another good example is Eco Sevi. I've been looking at her products for a while. I'll be honest, her stuff is expensive and I think it would be hard for me to justify buying a whole bunch of things. However, I think there comes a time when you can splurge if you are able to save money on other things. I don't use shampoo and by making my own curl activator (flaxseed gel), I feel like I can splurge every once in a while (like my birthday!) and buy some of her stuff. I recently messaged her about the ingredients. There are so many homemade products, it's hard to know what's safe. She has taken the necessary step (unfortunately, many home businesses do not do this) to have her products challenge tested in an independent lab to make sure that there are no issues with gram positive and gram negative bacteria or mold. Here's how she presents her Marshmallow Hair Pudding.
Eco Sevi's is very similar to KCKT because they both use slippery elm and marshmallow root. However, KCKT does not mention water, whereas Eco Sevi rightly does. The question that comes to mind is, was this an honest mistake or did they deliberately leave water off the ingredient list? Kinky-Curly is not a new company. They have been around for a while and I know people, like the blogger from The Natural Haven, have written to the owner of Kinky-Curly and asked about it. However, they haven't updated to say they've gotten an answer and Kinky-Curly hasn't changed their ingredient label. As much as I'd like to believe that it was a mistake, the fact that they haven't changed their ingredient label makes me think that they feel like it's ok to be dishonest.
Plus, what does natural mean? Is it coming from a plant, or the earth, or what? They do say they are cruelty-free, so I would assume that none of their fragrances contain animal products, however, if they buy pre-made mixes, it's hard to know exactly what goes into them. Case in point: KCNT doesn't have water listed on their ingredient list, even though, more likely than not, water is the first ingredient. What if the natural fragrance company they used decided to use the same dishonest business practices that Kinky-Curly uses and decides to omit some ingredients and they are animal-derived? Maybe they make their own natural fragrance, so they know exactly what's in it. I still believe they need to state it due to allergies. It's a safety matter.
However, there comes a point where you realise you can't control everything. In an ideal world, I would like to know exactly what fragrances are being used, but if they're natural and phthalate-free, I could live with that.
The screenshot below is from 2018.
In cases like this, you are able to report products to the FDA.
It's simple and anonymous. This product falls under the cosmetic
category. While I honestly did not want to report the product, I feel
like I'm obligated to do so to ensure proper labeling requirements are
met.
Even though I would not get this again, I know that for some people this is their HG (holy grail) product. You can buy it buy it from Amazon or from Naturally Curly, and read other people's reviews of the product.
About Kinky-Curly: On my page about Kinky-Curly, you can read more about their company and read my product reviews. I have reviewed other companies and their products as well and you can find those on my complete list.
YouTube: Check out my video on KCKT and be sure to subscribe to my channel!
Disclaimer: Per FTC regulations, I am disclosing that I use affiliate links. I will earn a commission if you decide to make a purchase after clicking through the links. It is a way to support my blog at no additional cost to you. You can read more here.
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| buy it here |
I bought both the KCKT and the KCCC. I looked at the ingredients and thought ooooo, natural! Must be good! This product is cruelty-free and has some organic ingredients as well. It works so well. The knots would literally melt away and detangling my daughter's hair no longer was a nightmare. I absolutely loved this product. The slippery elm and marshmallow root seemed to work like magic.
Ingredients
They
have a very short ingredient list and at first glance it looks fantastic. The words organic and natural immediately popped out at me. I used it and told all my friends about it and even lent the bottle to a few so they could try it out. It does not have humectants, which can cause frizz during high and low dews,  |
| image taken from Naturally Curly |
What's an Extract?
Now, I want you to think about this. What is an extract? Vanilla extract is something that most people are familiar with. So it's taking out properties of a substance using a solvent, such as aloe, water, or alcohol. Vanilla extract is super easy to make. Get vanilla beans, chop them up, add them to a bottle of high proof alcohol. Flip the bottle once a day and ta-da, in a few months you have homemade vanilla extract at a much cheaper cost than what you can get at the store.Kinky-Curly states that their products don't have alcohol, so let's look at another example. Tea is a water-based extract. How do you make tea? Well, it depends on how much of a connoisseur you are. I make tea by boiling water and then pouring it over a tea bag (sorry, I know, fresh tea leaves are better, one day I will get there). I wait a few minutes without bouncing the tea bag up and down. Then I take the tea bag out and ta-da, tea!
Both of these have two ingredients: the substance and a liquid (either alcohol or water). So if reason and logic prevail, both those ingredients should go on the ingredient list. A good example of how this is done is with Saribelle Skincare Instant Facial Foaming Cleanser. This particular cleanser has both water and alcohol listed first; the extracts start coming after that.
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| image source |
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More Questions Raised
If they lied about their ingredient label, what else are they lying about? What about the natural fragrances? Now, I understand that
fragrance is proprietary and they might now want to reveal that info,
however, people have allergies or people avoid certain fragrances.Plus, what does natural mean? Is it coming from a plant, or the earth, or what? They do say they are cruelty-free, so I would assume that none of their fragrances contain animal products, however, if they buy pre-made mixes, it's hard to know exactly what goes into them. Case in point: KCNT doesn't have water listed on their ingredient list, even though, more likely than not, water is the first ingredient. What if the natural fragrance company they used decided to use the same dishonest business practices that Kinky-Curly uses and decides to omit some ingredients and they are animal-derived? Maybe they make their own natural fragrance, so they know exactly what's in it. I still believe they need to state it due to allergies. It's a safety matter.
However, there comes a point where you realise you can't control everything. In an ideal world, I would like to know exactly what fragrances are being used, but if they're natural and phthalate-free, I could live with that.
Reporting a Non-Compliant Product
INCI has recently become stricter in their labeling requirements. One good example is Shea Moisture. They changed many of their labels and customers clamored and complained that they changed their formulas in 2015 and again in 2017 and 2018. Shea Moisture denies this and says they are simply meeting the INCI labeling requirements. The screenshot below is from 2015.  |
| image source |
The screenshot below is from 2018.
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Smell and Texture
It smells sweet and fruity. It's thick, like a cream.
Size, Price, and Packaging
This product is more expensive than what I'd usually spend, however, a little does goes a long way. Because I'm cheap and like to get my money's
worth as well as cut down on waste, I cut open containers to get the
last little bit out. This is a soft container and is easy to cut, however, I don't think I would need to do that because the product doesn't stick to the sides.
Would I Get This Again?
No. I would not. I don't like the company's bad labeling practices at all. I have made a few changes to my daughter's hair routine as well and it's cut down on the knots. First of all, she wanted it cut, so I trimmed a few inches and that really helped. The second thing I did was use conditioner on her hair while she is in the bath, wait a bit and then comb it through. I think that really helped make a difference. She no longer has a rat's nest on the top of her head every morning.Even though I would not get this again, I know that for some people this is their HG (holy grail) product. You can buy it buy it from Amazon or from Naturally Curly, and read other people's reviews of the product.
Random Thoughts
Patch test before using.
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