Homecoming mums are a truly Texas tradition, and a recent viral TikTok highlights just how crazy (and crazy expensive!) these beloved keepsakes can be.
It's a rite of passage for Texas high schoolers to buy custom made creations ahead of their football team's homecoming game. The traditional accessories range from small floral garters to giant creations decked out with a bouquet of fake (sometimes real) flowers, stuffed animals, bells, and yards of ribbons and lace that girls wear around their necks.
“To the people who come to me, this is like their wedding dress. It’s like a diamond—it’s never big enough," professional mum-maker Elizabeth Cleaver told Houstonia magazine.
A Corpus Christi-area high school student named Rachel took to TikTok to show how much her classmates are spending on their mums.
While one girl said that she spent $20 on her small, modest mum, another girl quickly admitted to spending nearly $400 on hers!
Rachel's video has been viewed more than 2 million times. Commenters outside of Texas wrote that they didn't understand the custom.
"Me, a Californian so confused 👁👄👁," wrote one person.
"This isn’t normal outside of texas??😳" asked another.
"I love how no other state knows what mums are! I feel like as the years go by the mum’s get bigger 😳🥰" said another commenter.