Everything You Need to Know About Homecoming Mums

It's homecoming time in Amarillo! That means the mums and garters are being made at home, dates are being asked, and school pride is on full display. It's truly one of the best times of the year when it comes to high school.

Let's go back to the mums and garters for a minute. I truthfully knew nothing about mums and garters until we moved to Amarillo. Sure, we had lived in Texas for eight years prior to moving here, but we didn't have kids anywhere near high school then.

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The History Of Mums In Texas

It's a tradition that dates back to the 1930's. There are records pointing to Baylor University around 1935-1936 as the first sighting of them. It was in the 50s when they absolutely exploded in popularity. So much so that florists couldn't keep up with the demand, and that's when the artificial components started to come in.

Now, the mums are extravagant, over the top, nearly as big and long as the girls that wear them. Flashing lights, stuffed animals, etc. The bigger, the better. Seniors traditionally wear white and gold ones that are oversized, which distinguishes them from the underclassmen who tend to get school colors and smaller mums.

Premade or Made Yourself

Now that we've got one kid in junior high and one in high school, they're both asking dates, which means we need to come up with these mums. We started looking them up on things like Pinterest and other sites to get an idea of what to do with them. We saw the school was offering premade ones as well as kits.

We decided to go with one of each. A mini premade and a small kit. Now, we didn't just take the mini and call it good. We added to it, while the kit we built up from scratch. End result? Obviously, the mini was quicker to put together, but the kit really allowed for customization. I guess it comes down to how much time you have.