Taylor Swift's 'End of an Era' Documentary Reveals the "Sentimental" Meaning Behind Her Eras Tour Costume Designers

"Nostalgia is a huge part of the Eras Tour," Taylor Swift says in Episode 3 of The End of an Era, her Disney+ documentary. "If you were 12 years old during the Red era you're going to remember certain things that you saw...it's my job to bring those visuals back to you." The camera cut to Red-era Swift in crimson Oxfords and that bedazzled tailcoat, proving "wardrobe is one way to do that."

Her beloved stylist, Joseph Cassell Falconer, understands the aesthetic of each era as clearly as Swift. (After all, they've worked together since she was 16 years old.) "The reason I'm able to do my job so well is because I am a fan, too," Falcon reveals in the docu-series. "I love the way Taylor and I work: it's like this secret language that we have."

Episode 3 gives fans a sneak peek at Falconer and Swift's fitting before Oct. 2024's Miami show. The dynamic duo welcomed some Eras Tour outfit changes into the mix, including a new fringed mini dress and a fresh Reputation bodysuit, from Roberto Cavalli. "For the tour, we chose to be a little reflective and sentimental and tie in the designers who had been with Taylor from the beginning," Falconer says. Roberto Cavalli has dressed Swift since 2010, even during her first-ever stadium tour for Speak Now in 2011. So, she wore custom Roberto Cavalli every night on the Eras Tour, as a tribute to the label's loyalty.

Christian Louboutin, another longtime Swiftie, had a starring role in the Eras Tour. "I mean dancing all night...yeah my feet ache, but I'm wearing [Christian Louboutins]," Swift shares in the documentary. "It is a privilege for these feet to ache like this." She pledged allegiance to red bottoms back in 2009, wearing pairs at Met Galas, in music videos, at award shows, and on the Reputation tour.

Once the Eras Tour rolled around, her Louboutin collection grew by the hundreds. The brand crafted over 250 pairs for the pop star, including Lover knee-highs, Reputation lace-up boots, Red loafers, and Fearless cowboy boots (to name a few). Hundreds of hand-placed crystals sparkled atop almost every silhouette (besides her Tortured Poets Department cabaret heels).

According to an InStyle interview, Christian Louboutin replaced each painted leather sole with rubber for the Eras Tour. That way, Swift felt safe and secure during each section of her nearly four-hour performance.

Early on in Episode 3, Swift called the Lover section's Versace bodysuit her "new favorite, for sure." Who could blame her? The orange one-piece was corseted to perfection, even beneath hundreds of warm-toned rhinestones. "When you see the Versace bodysuit just made of all these crystals...it somehow heals me from having the stomach flu," Swift says. "If I'm wearing this, I gotta level up, I gotta be on the level of this outfit."

Another top contender for "favorite" Eras Tour look was the second Reputation bodysuit, which Swift waited to reveal until the Miami show. "The costumes generally mean a lot, but Reputation was monumental," Falconer says. ""The commitment the fans have is beyond the music—there's a connection on a deep soul level with Taylor." Swifties had been waiting for 131 shows for her new Reputation bodysuit, which some called "the most famous costume" on the Eras Tour.

The single-legged Roberto Cavalli catsuit marked Swift's first and only outfit change for Reputation, following months of wearing the same black-and-red rendition. "The original catsuit was made from a different fabric, so we had recreate the fabric for the second one," Falconer says. After constant alterations, Swift finally took center stage with new three-dimensional, yellow gold snakes front and center.

Swifties have always known the Eras Tour was a well-oiled machine. But the documentary proved just how precise the Grammy winner's 20 costume choices had to be. "Every outfit change is about a minute and 15 seconds, or less," says Jestina O'Dell, one of Swift's Eras Tour dressers. "Our fasted quick change though is 39 seconds with her in the room," when Swift traded the green Folklore Alberta Ferretti gown for Roberto Cavalli's 1989 mini skirt set.

"There were moments where I thought, 'I don't know if these costume changes are going to happen in time,'" Swift shares. "I remember one time I was running from the Evermore era, I trip over the hem of my dress...hobble into the quick change room...wasn't late for the intro of [Ready for It?]." Even so, Swift pulled off every look with ease, for 149 shows straight.