MUMS. I know this is a tradition that's unique to Texas, or at least a regional area that surrounds Texas, but Homecoming Mums are a big stinking deal and no homecoming celebration is complete without them.
It encompasses everything from designing and making your own mum - or your mum and your date's mum - to purchasing them, to receiving one and wearing it. Girls wear them pinned to their chest (or if they're really big, they come on a ribbon worn around the neck or around the shoulders); guys often get theirs on an armband (and they're smaller than the girls' version).
If you're not familiar with the tradition, a homecoming mum is a gigantic wearable corsage. The center is a white chrysanthemum silk flower surrounded by points made of fabric ribbon, and then there are dozens and dozens of fabric ribbons that hang off the flower. Those ribbons are decorated with everything from alphabet stickers that spell out the school's name, the girl's or guy's name, any sports they participate in, class of whatever ... and then there are all sorts of trinkets that are tied to the bottom of the ribbons. Some of them are molded plastic in the shape of the school's mascot or the graduating year, other things include whistles, a lucky rabbit's foot (though that's more for pre-2010's, I think), jingle bells and mini-cowbells ... sometimes the flower at the top is worked into the shape of a heart, other times there's a stuffed animal worked into it, and often there's a ribbon across it with their name.
Homecoming mums are a big stinking deal here in Texas. My husband hates the tradition; I think it's a fun craft and a sweet keepsake but you can wind up spending a LOT of money on them. They're worn to school and then to the homecoming football game.
https://www.countryliving.com/life/a66054345/homecoming-mums-tradition-texas/
