After kicking off the highly anticipated The Eras Tour a few weeks ago, fans are even more excited for Miss Swift to come to their city. Swifties around the country and even internationally fought for their lives to get tickets. They didn’t break TicketMaster for no reason, though. Swift’s setlist consists of 44 songs making the concert over three hours long. The only appropriate way to attend an event like this is in style. However, tickets are not cheap. Many Swifties are taking very creative and affordable approaches to their concert outfits, referencing iconic looks from the singer’s career, memes from the fanbase or dressing as lyrics or songs. Here are 8 Eras Tour outfit ideas you can create on a budget, honoring her first 8 albums.
Debut
Baby Taylor is a memorable and loved era for fans. From the Y2K outfits to the fake country twang and the completely unhinged nature of 16-year-old girls. This era can be a super simple outfit: t-shirt, lower rise boot cut jeans and cowboy boots. If you’re attending the show with a less-enthusiastic Swiftie like maybe your mom, this could be a great outfit option and most likely already in her closet.
However, if you want to pay ode to the self-titled album but put more effort in, you have options. While she already sang “Our Song” as the Vegas night one surprise song, this iconic outfit in the crowd might inspire her to “play it again.”
This outfit is cute and simple with a touch of glamour. It’s also super easy to put together.
What you’ll need is probably already part of your wardrobe. The base of this outfit is a little black dress. If you want to stay as true to the original as possible, she’s wearing a halter with an open back and a flowing skirt. Dresses similar to this can be found almost anywhere, especially at your local thrift store. The long black, fingerless gloves can be another easy find. You could get crafty with a pair of black socks or find a similar pair on Amazon like these ones here. These gloves can be reused for Halloween costumes or add a cool retro look to different outfits as well!
A black headband is another popular basic. You can also use a thick black ribbon as an alternative! And of course, black boots are essential to the look. Cowboy boots are the obvious choice, but something like a Dr Martin combat boot would work also. Another option that is less accurate but more comfortable would be some black high-top Converse.
Finally, you can get your hands on the large silver earrings and bracelets from an old jewelry box. Anything big and sparkly will work.
Once you have everything, throw on a smokey eye and a nude lip and attempt to recreate Swift’s curly bee-hive hairdo.
Fearless
This era would be a great opportunity to dig up your old Jonas Brothers’ concert tee, but there are better ways to represent Taylor’s first Album of the Year winner. This simple and iconic look will have you saying “hey, isn’t this easy?”
While the junior jewels jammies from the “You Belong With Me” music video may seem like a basic cop-out, it’s easy, comfortable and fun. All you need is a slightly oversized white tee, fabric markers and pajama bottoms. For a nicer quality white shirt, craft stores such as Michael’s sell different brands of plain shirts that are intended to be used in some sort of DIY project. Another alternative and what you might lean towards if you’re prone to mistakes are cheap packs of undershirts for men. You can get multiple for a cheap price if you don’t mind thinner and maybe less corporative fabric. Fabric markers can be found at any craft store, big retailers such as Target and Walmart or places like Amazon. Simply copy the design of the front of the shirt and the colorful triangles around the hems with your markers. As for the signatures, some Swifties have included names of their own friends or Taylor’s albums. If you’re a people person, you can bring a couple of markers and get friends you meet at the concert to sign your shirt. This turns what you may see as a basic outfit into a souvenir.
In the video, she wears navy blue and white plaid pants. Pants with a similar pattern or color scheme will be easy to find, especially in the men’s section of certain stores. For Swifties attending outdoor shows over the summer, finding a pair of pajama shorts is an alternative. The shirt is the main attraction of this outfit, though.
Minimal makeup, a ponytail and fake (or real) glasses will complete the look.
Speak now
The “Speak Now” era might be both the easiest and hardest to dress for. There are obvious choices like replicas of her tour costumes. Most Swifties remember her gold sparkly dress or the unforgettable “Dear John” purple moment. Actually, anything purple or sparkly fits this era. However, those outfits may be harder to find or not in your budget depending on what your vision is and where you can shop. Something to take into account with all of your potential outfits is how practical they are and if you are buying a replica of an outfit, how often you’ll wear it after the concert. Some sentimental Swifties might treat their Eras Tour outfit like a wedding dress and keep it somewhere special, preserved forever or maybe create a memory box where you can put your outfit, your light-up bracelet, confetti and tickets.
While “Speak Now” does not have as many re-wearable outfit options compared to other eras, there are a lot of things you can do which might require some more outside-the-box or creative thinking.
Similar to the “Fearless” outfit, my idea for “Speak Now” is simple and leaves more room for improvisation. The main attraction for this look can be bought or DIY. Some people might already have what they need buried in an old drawer somewhere. Although maybe you got rid of this article of clothing which could have you saying “I’d go back in time and change it, but I can’t.”
What you’ll need is a Team Jacob t-shirt. Preferably one with Taylor Lautner’s face on it. These are widely available on Amazon. This one is simple and looks like one you could have gotten at Hot Topic back in the day. Etsy also has some more current options like designs playing off of new memes or baby-tee style tops. You could also make your own with iron on transfer paper or more high-end tools like a Cricut or heat press.
You can pair this shirt with any bottoms you’d like. You could go simple and do jeans or shorts or spice it up with a fun skirt or pair of pants. Don’t forget to write a nice, big “13” on your hand, though.
red
Even before the re-release in 2021, “Red” was an era full of memorable looks from music videos, performances and even paparazzi photos. But Blondie wasn’t done blessing us with content and nearly a decade after the album’s initial release she put out a short film, a new music video and made the most public appearances since before the lockdown.
Swifties have not hesitated to get creative with this era. At the Eras Tour, expect to see a number of “crumbled up pieces of paper.” It’s hard to pick just one look to represent this album and Swifties haven’t even scratched the surface yet. Here’s one option you could pick that is practical and comfortable enough to “dance for all that we’ve been through.”
It was 2012. Taylor got bangs and started wearing high-waisted everything. Conspiracies circulated about her not having a belly button. That’s commitment. That’s drive.
For either of these looks get a pair of red or black high-waisted shorts. They never went out of style, so it won’t be hard to dig some up or find for a good price. Either get a white button-up or a striped shirt for a more simple approach. You can also more closely recreate the Jingle Ball look by getting any sort of sparkly bra top and mesh top for layering. Red nails and red lips are mandatory for this era. Taylor has famously used MAC’s Ruby Woo for her lips if you’re a purist about these things.
Red shoes would be a nice touch, but not everyone has them laying around. Any Converse, Keds, Vans or other low-rise shoes would fit perfectly for this era and keep you comfortable all night.
1989
“1989” was an era all about besties. Taylor debuted “the squad” and included all of her favorite women in the music video for “Bad Blood”. From Cara Delevinge to Mariska Hargitay, Miss Swift honored her friendships and uplifted the women in her life. While some called it a PR stunt, Taylor was finally standing up against the media for pinning her down to the angry ex-girlfriend trope by spending more time with friends. Songs like “Shake It Off”, “Welcome to New York” and “New Romantics” celebrated all types of relationships. This was also her first pop album and her second to take home Album of the Year.
Of course, she still included some emotional love songs and breakup songs alongside her theme of friendships and youth.
My outfit for this era is a little less traditional than the others. Inspired by the song “I Know Places” you and your bestie can dress as a fox and a hunter. The hunter can yassify some camo print and the fox just needs an orange outfit and a pair of ears.
reputation
The Rep era is full of sparkles and snakes. The color palette is black with deep purples and greens. There’s a lot you could do with the aesthetic of the era alone. This outfit is a recreation with one major centerpiece. This is something you can buy or make. Are you “ready for it”?
Of course, I’m talking about the “Getaway Car” outfit from the Reputation Tour. While she has on this staple purple dress, the real star is the glitter blazer. There are similar ones on sale on various sites and stores. However, a simple way to DIY this would be to buy or thrift a blazer and bedazzle it. Actually, clothing dye glitter is a thing if you wanted to also look into that.
You can wear any plain black or dark-colored dress underneath and do whatever you want with the jacket! Pair it with a dark lip, dark nails, boots and snake jewelry. Maybe if you show up in this outfit, Taylor will perform “Getaway Car” for you. Manifesting works!
lover
“Lover” is one of my favorite albums as far as aesthetics go. My favorite color is pink, so that’s the main reason actually. This look is almost all DIY. I considered it for my eras tour outfit for a while, mainly because I wanted to do the fun of putting it together. “Hey kids, spelling is fun!” and so is making this outfit!
While the “ME!” music video is full of looks, the easiest to recreate is probably the floral dress she wears in the beginning. The actual garment she wore costs about five grand, but it shouldn’t cost more than 15 dollars to recreate this. You can wear a black v-neck tank like she does in the video or any plain black top. As for the skirt, this is where the fun comes in.
The DIY tulle skirt is a historical hack for crafty gals. All you need is some elastic or thick ribbon and some white tulle which you can find and probably any craft store. Take strips of the tulle and tie them around the ribbon. The ribbon should be long enough to wrap around your waist and tie in the back. If you’re using elastic, measure to size and sew it closed so it becomes a circle. There are tons of tutorials for this on YouTube and it’s super easy once you get the hang of it.
Once the skirt base is done, get some flowers from either the craft store or any dollar store. Fake ones, obviously. Then, with your preferred method, attach the flowers to the tulle. Hot glue is an option, but small stitches are the safer bet for durability.
Whatever you chose to wear to tour, make sure it’s something you feel comfortable and confident in! You’re going to be dancing all night long, so take that into account, especially with footwear. Most importantly though, be safe and have FUN!