MIAMI — Renee Castro keeps a sacred tradition. A devout Swiftie, she has been to every single Taylor Swift world tour in her hometown of Miami.

But for The Eras Tour, Swift’s record-breaking, career-defining, international tour that takes over the Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens this weekend, Castro had no luck securing a seat. Determined to find a last minute ticket, Castro began planning an outfit to wear to the concert anyway. She found hope in a Marshalls clearance section: the perfect black bodysuit to recreate one of Swift’s looks.

“I pulled it out of the rack and my jaw dropped,” the 27-year-old said. “This is a sign. I’m going to the show.”

For pop music fans, simply attending their favorite artist’s concerts is not enough. Making special outfits to wear to performances is part of the experience. Swifties from across South Florida and beyond are sewing, bedazzling, customizing and styling costumes to wear for Swift’s Miami concerts at the Hard Rock Stadium from Friday to Sunday. It’s a common trend among the most passionate of fanbases. Beyoncé fans, known as the BeyHive, pulled up to her Hard Rock Stadium show in their “Renaissance”-inspired looks last year.

Some fans scour online retailers like Amazon and dig through thrift stores to piece together an outfit that represents their favorite song, album or, in this case, era. Others get crafty with thousands of rhinestones, E6000 glue and a boatload of patience to replicate Swift’s outfits from music videos, concerts or awards shows.

‘It’s like Barbie’s Dreamhouse’

Though she doesn’t have a ticket (yet!), Castro used the $12 bodysuit she found to create a replica of an outfit Swift wears to perform songs from her “Reputation” album: a one-legged, one-sleeved bodysuit wrapped in red and white bedazzled snakes. She hand drew the snake design on her iPad, printed them out with her Cricut machine, applied them to the bodysuit and painstakingly glued every single stone by hand.

Castro, who grew up singing Swift’s songs in her middle school hallways and now hosts a Swift-themed podcast with her friends, said wearing handmade costumes and exchanging friendship bracelets with fellow Swifties elevates the concert experience.

“You feel like you’re part of something bigger than what you’re even there for,” she said. “It adds that warmth. It’s like girlhood.”

Alexis Roberts, 26, one of the admins on the Facebook group for Swifties going to the Miami shows, said the custom outfits add to the strong sense of community at Swift’s concerts.

“It’s like Barbie’s dream house,” Roberts said.

Roberts has loved Swift since 2006, she said. Somewhere on YouTube there’s a video of her as an 8-year-old singing “Our Song” with her cousin. Her love for Swift is so strong, it sparked a love for traveling. Roberts, who lives in Merritt Island, Florida, saw Swift in concert for the first time at The Eras Tour in Tampa last year. She saw Swift again in Atlanta, got herself a passport and then flew internationally for the first time to see the show in Paris.

Roberts’ is in the midst of bedazzling her outfit for one of the Miami concerts. Her inspiration: a glamorous bejeweled corset Swift wore in her “Bejeweled” music video. Her materials: shapewear from JCPenney and a pair of nude “granny panties.”

She planned on using her time at home during Hurricane Milton to wrap up her outfit, but Roberts ran out of rhinestones. Her Amazon order will get to her just a day before the first concert, so it’ll be a race against the clock to finish bedazzling the bottoms.

“I wanted to do something different that I haven’t seen a lot of people do before,” Roberts said. “And I wanted to challenge myself with something so intricate.”

There’s certainly a pattern here. Swift and her fans love a sparkly bodysuit, whether they’re homemade or professionally done. Lauren Cohen, a certified Swiftie and the Miami Film Festival associate director of programming, got a custom replica of Swift’s “Lover” bodysuit made at YouNique Bridal Boutique in Miami, complete with shining silver and pink rhinestones and shimmering blue sequins.

Connecting through music and fashion

Over in Columbia, South Carolina, Warren Weyer is taking on the “Lover” look all on his own.

He has been secretly applying thousands stones to a bodysuit to surprise his girlfriend Regina for her to wear to the Miami concert. Though he’s seen people online sell “Lover” bodysuits for $1,000, Weyer figured he could do it himself even though he’s never bedazzled anything before. It’s not too hard, he said, but it’s tedious work.

“I can always buy an outfit, but to have something handmade for her is more special,” he said.

A formerly “closeted” Swift fan himself, Weyer and his girlfriend will attend the Friday show together.

“I feel like this is one of those generational talents that if you don’t get a chance to see them, you might miss out,” he said.

Amanda Lewis, of West Palm Beach, recruited her sister and sister-in-law to help finish her concert outfit. The trio worked on applying silver rhinestones to Lewis’ dress and boots during the hurricane. Lewis’ outfit is inspired by the bedazzled blazer and boots Swift wears during the concert to perform “The Man.” To account for the heat and humidity, Lewis grabbed an old, sleeveless halter top dress from her closet to recreate the look.

Swift’s music has been Lewis’ way to bond with her sister, Ashley.

“I love her poetry and songwriting,” Lewis said. “It comes from the heart. It’s not generated by AI. It’s not generated by a bunch of songwriters. It’s from her.”

Swift’s music has been especially meaningful — even cathartic — for Alyssa Valdes, of Oakland, Florida.

A longtime fan, Valdes said she “became a Swiftie” as she watched videos of The Eras Tour when it began in last spring. Around that time, as Valdes was going through a divorce, Swift’s music helped her heal with its themes of love, heartbreak and redemption, she said.

“Over the last 16 months, I’ve been able to connect with every single album in a different way,” Valdes said. “She speaks so much truth, it helps to validate what I feel on the inside. I’m not alone.”

Valdes’ outfit reflects her journey. On the front of her T-shirt, she added the lyrics from the 10-minute version of “All Too Well.” On the back are lyrics from “The Manuscript,” from Swift’s latest album. “But the story isn’t mine anymore,” her shirt reads.

She hopes fans continue the tradition of expressing themselves at concerts.

“People who don’t usually have the courage to wear such things or create such things are feeling empowered to be themselves,” Valdes said. “No matter if it’s just one shirt with something handwritten on it versus a full-out gemstone, glittered, bedazzled outfit, you’re seeing individuality and a connection among peers. It’s beautiful, honestly.”

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