Needless to say, fans went wild for her dramatic chop.
"OMGGG I LOVE THIS ON YOU," one exclaimed.
"YESSS," last year's runner-up Laura Sharrad wrote.
"Nice!!! Love the feel of a nice haircut!" returning star Amina Elshafei also remarked.
When one even remarked that they'd been trying to get a haircut like Melissa's but kept getting talked out of it, Melissa herself responded, "Barring any continuity, just do it!!"
This isn't Melissa's first experimentation with her hair.
In January, not long after she announced her split from husband of three years Joe Jones, Melissa showed off her new lighter tresses on Instagram.
“New hair, who dis?” Melissa captioned the snap at the time. “A waaaaay overdue salon session with my girl @hairbyjasminekara. 💇♀”
Last year, Melissa graced the cover of WHO's Sexiest People issue and revealed that uniqueness and individuality really appeal to her.
"I was reading an article about how there’s an Instagram face that a lot of people are aspiring to, whether that’s by using Facetune, makeup or even getting surgery to achieve this very homogenous look," she said at the time.
"But I think to myself, 'Why would I want to look like or be like everybody else?’ I absolutely just want to be myself and there’s power in that."
She added: "I don’t think the word 'sexy' is so literal any more. We’re not talking pure objectification of someone who just looks amazing. Sexy is about everything someone brings to who they are. I think individuality is sexy.
"To me, also, I think sexy is a combination of intelligence; it’s a unique perspective on life and it’s being bold enough to hold on to your convictions and live life on your terms. I think sexy is to be fearless and real. When you have nothing to hide and you’re just purely and unapologetically yourself, that’s inspirational – and sexy."
