We are counting down the days to Homecoming, when school spirit is sky high and students will be adorned in a plethora of ribbons and bells. Homecoming mums may be Texas’s best kept secret, with neighboring states only just catching onto the trend.

Mums started as just simple chrysanthemum flowers with several brightly colored ribbons attached. Boys would often buy these corsages as a school fundraiser, and then bequeath them to their Homecoming dates. However, “corsage” is no longer an adequate word to describe the Homecoming mum.

Around Texas, students now use satin flowers, hundreds of ribbons and even lights to make their mums festive. More modest ones start at around $70, but the price can skyrocket into the upper $200s and beyond. It can be assumed that some see the mum as a symbol of status among schools. Normally, freshmen receive one flower, and seniors get four or more.

While the tradition may seem odd to out-of-staters, it is loved by Texans.

“I love making them from scratch, it’s so fun. I love showing off all the hard work I put into it too,” senior Lexy Prichard, whose mum last year cost $150, said.

Boys don’t get left out of the action, either. They get to wear smaller versions of the mums, called garters, on their arms. Garters generally cost less, because of their  smaller size, and are made by the girls for their dates. Girls’ mums are usually either made by their dates, or their dates’ mother and sisters. It is not uncommon, however, for a girl to make her own mum so it is personalized to perfection.

If you are talented in the art of mum making, it can be a great money making business to get into.  Mum makers (yes, it’s an actual profession) usually charge money to make the mum, plus 15-50% of what the mum cost to make to keep for themselves.

Mums and garters will be unveiled Friday morning at the Homecoming breakfast in the cafeteria starting at 6:30 a.m.