As soon as 7th Heaven ended, Ashlee Simpson surprised everyone by adopting a DIY brown hairstyle using CVS box dye.
Balance between music and acting
When Ashlee Simpson shot 40 episodes of 7th Heaven in 2002, she was writing her debut album Autobiography on the one hand.
On the set, she would repeat dialogues with one hand and compose new songs with the other.
Rachel Blanchard would come to her trailer and react to new tunes, and Beverly Mitchell would rehearse scenes with her every day.
Ashlee still describes that period as a fun web of layers, because trying your hand at both acting and music simultaneously was no small task.
Fun in the Camden family
The cast of 7th Heaven was not just co-stars for Ashlee, but “a great family”.
The atmosphere on the set was so strong that sometimes, even during lunch breaks, talks of friendship would take place.
The innocence of little Mackenzie Rosman, the energy of Jessica Biel and Ashlee, surrounded by music—they all mixed so much that the shooting spot felt like the Camden house.
Shooting over and hair revolution
As soon as the shooting was over, Ashlee had to leave her signature blonde haircut and find a new identity.
For continuity, her bright blonde shoulder-length haircut remained a staple on the set, but as soon as the final cut came, she headed to CVS without wasting any time.
Box dye and brown hair
“On the same day, I picked up a box of brown hair dye from the drugstore and colored my hair,” Ashlee told the Pod Meets World podcast laughingly.
Not only this, when she had to shoot the music video of “Pieces of Me” the next day, she called and warned everyone—“Look, I have brown hair, which too bought from CVS!”
This DIY experiment proved that even a cheap option can give great results.
Pressure to experiment in public
This story of Ashlee is not just about a hair change, but about public entry in that era, when every move was caught on camera like CCTV.
The years after college, when you experiment with colorful hair, are a moment that shines through on social media.
Every shade, every brush stroke is documented by an audience, and fans are waiting for your next look.
When Ashlee stepped out of the Camden family on 7th Heaven and tried a new look, she learned that there’s an art to staying current in the entertainment industry.
A simple drugstore dye showed that there’s magic in change when you decide from the heart and try something new.
Bonus Fun Fact:
Ashlee later went on to try even darker shades, because when your hair becomes a public object, every color becomes a part of your personal story!