Rachel Roy

Designer and InStyle contributor Rachel Roy stopped by the opening of Valentino‘s Rodeo Drive store in her own design—a watercolor silk one-shoulder dress just seen on Michelle Obama! “I’m a big believer in one shoulder for cocktail,” Roy told InStyle.com. “It’s one of my favorite styles.” The First Lady agrees! “She looked amazing. I love when someone wears a nude tone, it elongates,” the designer said of Obama’s appearance in the dress at the Palacio do Planalto in Brazil earlier this month. Roy then added, “Her arms were beautiful.” Click through the gallery to see our favorite looks from Rachel Roy’s latest collection!

— Lindzi Scharf

Rachel Roy‘s fall collection, which she titled ”Modern Landscape,” was fit for a modern woman! “The starting point came from female landscape architects, amazing women who take elements from nature,” Roy told us of the inspiration. In turn, her lineup featured chic, versatile separates—from slim, leather-trimmed trousers to go-anywhere knit skirts. Warm, wearable elements like confetti knit snoods and cozy colored fur complemented the styles, while accessories included lace-up platform ankle boots and covetable clutches. See our favorite looks in the gallery!

MORE: The Hottest Fashion Week News!

— Violet Gaynor, reporting by Caitlin Petreycik

Designer and InStyle contributor Rachel Roy keeps four Deepak Chopra books by her bed and often cites the mind-body healing pioneer as a constant inspiration. So when it came time to pick her next celebrity collaborator—she previously worked with New York Knick Amar’e Stoudemire and singer Estelle—she asked Chopra if he was up for the challenge… after first meeting him via Twitter. “I reached out with a Tweet and he responded,” Roy told InStyle.com exclusively. “For me, getting a response from Deepak was like somebody else getting a response from Madonna. That’s when I asked him for a meeting.” Their friendship flourished, and now the two plan to launch a T-shirt collection featuring Chopra’s inspirational quotes. “I have a vision of vintage rock-and-roll tees, but instead of the title of the album, it would be the saying,” Roy said. “Even girls who don’t know Deepak will think they’re wearing a cute shirt.” While the lineup isn’t finalized—she’s even considering jewelry items showing her favorite evil eye symbol—the products will land in stores by the end of the year. And the collection involves charity: All proceeds will be donated to the Chopra Foundation to support education in India. We can’t wait to see what they come up with!

And no need to wait until the end of the year for some Chopra in your life—this month, he’s launching a pre-programmed meditation mp3 button, available for $28 exclusively at ahalife.com. The site will sell the Deepak Chopra for Rachel Roy collection toward the end of the year.

Plus, see celebrities wearing Rachel Roy designs!

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“Stop putting your hand on your hip when you take pictures!” That’s the advice designer Rachel Roy gave Gabrielle Union and Sanaa Lathan recently. Both celebrities put the strategy to work at an event for Charlize Theron’s Africa Outreach Project this week—wearing Rachel Roy looks, of course—where they diligently kept their hands at their sides for photographers. “This was our first time on the carpet without our hand on our hip,” Union told InStyle.com. “I felt a little less confident. I’d gotten used to posing that way.” Lathan agreed: “It was so hard. I went through withdrawal!” So why did Roy tell them to ditch the hand-on-hip moment? “I think she just thinks it is cooler when you’re not looking like a pageant girl,” Union explained. “In this day and age of Toddlers and Tiaras, she’s like, ‘Enough!’” Do you agree?

Plus, never take a bad picture again! Read our tips for looking great in photos in the gallery! 

— Sharon Clott, with reporting by Lindzi Scharf