Christina Haack Looks So Different In HGTV Debut With Short Hair

HGTV star Christina Haack's gorgeous hair is talked about almost as often as her renovation skills. The beauty's signature style includes voluminous, long — Haack is almost unrecognizable without her hair extensions! — blond tresses, but longtime fans of "Flip or Flop" may remember that she had a different look when the reality show began. In the debut episode, which aired in 2013  back when she was still known as Christina El Moussa, Haack sported a short, straight, shoulder skimming style we couldn't imagine her with now she's a major star.

The then up-and-coming TV personality could be seen in the back of a car with her kids as her then-husband Tarek El Moussa drove them to a new project. Her bleach blond, choppy cut had face-framing layers and the ends styled away from her face, much like the flirty, flippy bob trend of 2024. Not only was the hue brighter than the more multi-dimensional shade she's made her signature, it was also several inches shorter. Haack seemingly hadn't gotten into wearing regular hair extensions yet, as not only did her mane lack her trademark length, it didn't look quite as full at the ends either.

Though Haack has mainly stuck with long styles since finding fame, she did return to a similar length in 2018. In an Instagram post from hair stylist and makeup artist Shannon Houston, the house flipper had several inches taken off her hair, which finished just below her shoulders. She was wearing a dirtier blond than the luminous shade we saw in the first episode of "Flip or Flop" though, and it had been styled it into more modern waves.

Christina Haack's hair may have undergone a transformation since "Flip or Flop" debuted — but it's certainly not the only thing that's changed. Haack's life is almost unrecognizable to her days pre-fame, and she's undergone quite the rollercoaster in her love life. One of the biggest upheavals was her and Tarek El Moussa's 2018 divorce after nine years of marriage, and her subsequent marriages to Ant Anstead (between 2018 and 2021) and Joshua Hall (from 2021 to 2025), with the latter giving Haack her priciest engagement ring.

Then there's the way the reality star has expanded her TV empire. Haack continued to work alongside El Moussa on "Flip or Flop" post-divorce. She also landed her own HGTV spin-off shows, including "Christina in the Country," "Christina On The Coast," and "Christina: Stronger by Design." Haack teamed up with El Moussa and his second wife, "Selling Sunset" star Heather Rae El Moussa, too, with the trio appearing on the spin-off "The Flip Off."

Haack has been open about how much she's changed as a person over the years too, which includes doing some important internal work. "At 41 I'm finally learning about safe communication, independence during commitment and a relationship that is NOT 0-100," she captioned an April 2025 Instagram post. "I am for sure guilty of putting pressure on others. Facing my own insecurities has forced me into doing the shadow work I've been avoiding.. it's time to break the cycle," she added. And we love to see her evolving not only on the outside, but on the inside too.