Vanderpump Rules star Raquel Leviss like a seasoned professional while strutting down the runway for Glaudi by Johana Hernandez amid New York Fashion Week on Thursday.
As she made a rare public appearance since her months-long affair with ex Tom Sandoval was exposed last spring, the 29-year-old former pageant queen, who now goes by Rachel, modeled two sparkling evening gowns.
Her first look was a strapless nude gown, covered in beads, with two racy cutouts on the sides.
Afterward, she slipped into a striking orange dress, adorned with sequins, with a knee-high slit, matching shrug and open-toed silver heels.
Vanderpump Rules star Raquel Leviss like a seasoned professional while strutting down the runway for Glaudi by Johana Hernandez amid New York Fashion Week on Thursday
While this marks her debut at New York Fashion Week (NYFW), Leviss previously walked for the designer during both Los Angeles Fashion Week and Paris Fashion Week.
Just before she strutted down the catwalk, the TV personality teased that she was ‘fashion show ready.’
The Sonoma State University graduate, who earned her bachelor’s degree in kinesiology in 2015, previously held the title of Miss Sonoma County.
She’s also competed in the Miss California and Miss Malibu USA events.
In August, it was confirmed that she would not be returning for season 11 of Vanderpump Rules.
Entertainment Tonight has reported that Raquel ‘decided against’ appearing in the next season.
The insider explained that Raquel was concerned a possible return would adversely impact all the progress she has made on her mental health this past year.
While this marks her debut at New York Fashion Week (NYFW), Leviss previously walked for the designer during both Los Angeles Fashion Week and Paris Fashion Week
Just before she strutted down the catwalk, the TV personality teased that she was ‘fashion show ready’
‘Rachel will not be returning for season 11 of Vanderpump Rules. There was a possibility up until recently she’d be returning for the new season, but ultimately decided against it,’ a source told the site.
‘Rachel is focused on her mental health journey and knew going back to the show would open her up to trauma she’s been working on healing. Rachel is looking forward to what the future holds for her.’
2023 was a tumultuous year for Raquel after she became embroiled in one on of the biggest scandals to hit reality television.
Raquel engaged in a months-long affair with her co-star, resulting in the end of his nine-year long relationship with Ariana Madix.
She seemingly confirmed she had no plans to return to the show during her tell-all chat with Bethenny.
‘I feel like I’ve been portrayed as the ultimate villain. My mistakes that I’ve made on camera live on forever. And you mentioned something about the addiction of doing reality TV and the way that they always dangle that carrot in front of you, like, “Well, you need to tell your side of the story otherwise it’s gonna be written for you.”
‘And that’s terrifying. So I almost went back, I know just because of that.’
She did not expand further on what she meant by ‘almost went back’ but the star has remained in her home state of Arizona – while filming for season 11 of the highly-popular Bravo reality series has been underway since late June.
Smiling Rachel looked healthy and in good spirits after recently checking herself into a mental health facility after facing the wrath of her co-stars during the show’s three-part reunion that taped in March.
She since checked out of the facility in mid-July and has reportedly to be staying with family in Arizona.
The Sonoma State University graduate, who earned her bachelor’s degree in kinesiology in 2015, previously held the title of Miss Sonoma County
In August, it was confirmed that she would not be returning for season 11 of Vanderpump Rules
Opening up about why she chose to take a step back from the public eye , the Bravo star told Bethenny: ‘It’s been a whirlwind, it’s been chaos. But I’ve taken some time to myself to reflect and try to understand my actions. And I finally have come to the place where it makes sense to me.
‘Part of the reason why I wanted to take some time away is just because it was so chaotic and loud, and there was such vitriol online.’
The reality star then explained that she chose to spend time in a treatment facility in an attempt to ‘understand my behaviors’.
She stated: ‘But then the other part of the reason why I wanted to go to a treatment facility was to understand my behaviors and my goal was to really get down to the bottom of, “OK why am I choosing men that are unavailable, why do I keep finding myself in unhealthy relationships, what are the things that I need to change about my behavior.”
‘And in knowing that I needed to make a change, I first had to know what leads to those behaviors.’
Bethenny explained that she had felt sympathy for Rachel while witnessing the Scandoval backlash and stated that she felt the star’s life was being ‘exploited’ without compensation.
The former RHONY star stated: ‘[The backlash] seemed disproportionate to me. I was watching clips on social media and hearing about this Scandoval — that had a name, was being marketed and it was being pumped through the PR machine. And I did say … “Everybody’s gonna be more well known than they were before because of this.”
Scandal: She faced backlash for her role in the affair from fans and her castmates alike last year
‘And my mind was, “They’re on a reality show. It’s set in a bar, is what I think. It’s fueled by alcohol and partying and multiple affairs. So what respectfully, what the hell is the big deal that everyone’s talking about?” … And I said your name just as an example of what I imagined to be somebody who had been exploited. And for the rest of your life, that content will be out there without compensation.’
Thankful Rachel responded: ‘It’s so nice to have you validate that experience because for a moment I thought I was going crazy. And it’s true, reality TV is edited, it is contrived to create a certain storyline. So it’s not all factual.
‘As a viewer tuning in, it’s easy to get wrapped up in that. Then the concept of an affair hits really hard to a lot of people. So I think there was a lot of projection happening, a lot of emotions that came up for people, and unfortunately I was the punching bag for a lot of that.’
The TV star made it clear that she understood why there was so much rage from both her co-stars and viewers as she continued: ‘I do want to take a moment though to just acknowledge the hurt that I brought to a lot of people. I was not careful in my actions and I was not thinking long-term. I was completely wrapped up in heartbreak and wanting to get certain needs met.’
Reflecting on the true reason for her behavior, she claimed: ‘Looking back now, I can see that I was still healing from a relationship from someone I thought I was going to marry. And in ending that, I still haven’t healed yet.’
Castmates: Leviss pictured with Sandoval
Rachel then confirmed that she had been turning to alcohol to try and get through the tough time, something she stated was not the best solution to her problem.
‘When I was filming, I was drinking a lot to ease that anxiety and in a reality TV environment, I wasn’t getting that safe space for me to express my emotions in a healthy way.’
When Bethenny stated that viewers – and Bravo producer Andy Cohen – had no true understanding of what it feels like to be part of a big reality show scandal that continues to manufactured unrealistic scenarios, Rachel agreed.
The reality star then breathed an audible sigh of relief over getting the chance to share her side of the story and she told Bethenny: ‘It feels like I have this opportunity to share how much I’ve grown, and how hard I’m trying to be a better person.
‘That person that I saw watching back on my TV is someone who is completely out of character from who I truly am. I feel like having this opportunity to represent myself in a way that I feel like is true to who I am is all I could ever ask for’.
The star took time to explain her name changes as she stated: ‘I changed my name Raquel in first grade, there was a few other Rachel’s in my class and I wanted to be special. I also feel like, deep down, I wasn’t comfortable in my own skin and I wanted to be somebody better – in my eyes.’
She claimed changing the name allowed her to ‘be that person’ but confirmed that her family never stopped calling her ‘Rachel’.
Rachel explained that her therapist told her that she was Rachel ‘to her core’ but put up a wall by being called Raquel.
The star explained that this persona may have manifested due to her long-term struggles with ‘social anxiety’ and being judged by other people.
She explained that she is now introducing herself by her birth name as a way to return to her roots.
