Mum's the word

By Amanda Rogers

Mansfield Record

The second floor of Randi Waldo’s house sparkles.

Packed in boxes, hanging on giant grids, looped over doors and strewn across the floor are ribbons, rhinestones, boas, trinkets and lots and lots of glitter. Waldo and her partner Amy Nunnally are continuing a treasured Texas tradition – the homecoming mum.

The pair and their business, Randi’s Mums, help local high school students express their creativity and unique personalities with original, handmade homecoming mums.

“It’s a way for them to express themselves,” explained Nunnally. “They get to show their personality, their interests.”

And most of the mums are large – some almost bigger than the girls who wear them. All of Randi’s Mums are held up with a lanyard because a simple pin wouldn’t hold them. While mums are for the girls, garters (worn around the top of the arm) are for the guys – and they also keep getting bigger.

“It’s a Texas thing,” Waldo explained. “Texas is very traditional. Everything is bigger in Texas.”

Waldo and Nunnally start by asking the teens about their interests, hobbies and what colors they would like.

“Most of the kids come over and pick out what they want,” Waldo said.

Teens like to put their names and their date’s name on their mum, often in rhinestones, along with their interests and honors, like FFA or National Honor Society. Nunnally specializes in multi-layer, glittery Cricuit cutouts of horses, school logos, sports, paws, letters, graduation year and more.

“We had one girl that wanted the brand on their cow,” Waldo said. “There’s not much Amy can’t make.

“Amy and I have gotten a reputation for detail work,” Waldo said. “People tell us they know it’s ours because it has a look. We have gotten known for the big ones.”

Waldo also hides a rhinestone paw print tucked in the back of the mum.

Then there’s the disco balls, bells, lights, bows, boas and braids. The braids are Waldo’s specialty, dozens of intricate designs made out of ribbon that she creates year-round. Everything starts with a cardboard base, then come the ribbons and braids, then the artificial flowers, then the details. The pair can put in more than 20 hours on each creation.

The tradition of the homecoming mum dates back to the early 1900s, when kids in Missouri started wearing them to the homecoming football game. By the 1930s, the mum tradition had spread to Texas. Back then, the mum was an actual flower, a chrysanthemum worn as a corsage to the homecoming game.

In the 1970s, Texans did what Texans do – and the mums got bigger. At some point, the mums transitioned from actual flowers to wide (up to 7-inch wide) artificial flowers that are sturdy and long-lasting. Not satisfied with one, some mums are made up of more than one artificial flower – up to four – or truly Texan – a mega-mum in the shape of the state.

When Waldo and Nunnally were in high school, their mums were a lot more modest. Waldo, who graduated from Eastern Hills in Fort Worth, had a real chrysanthemum for her mum, while Nunnally, who graduated from Arlington Lamar, remembers her mum having a few ribbons and bells.

Waldo started creating mums when she was in high school.

“A lady taught me how to do braids,” she said. “I made my brothers’ and their friends. I just loved doing it.”

Her skills lay dormant until she moved to Mansfield and a neighbor’s daughter was in need.

“A little girl across the street came over with her bag of stuff, just crying,” Waldo said. “Then she brought her friends.”

That was in 2013, and Randi’s Mums were born. She made mums until the COVID pandemic hit and she lost her father. She referred all of her clients to Nunnally, whose work she liked.

Nunnally started by making a garter for her daughter’s date in 2016. After taking on Waldo’s clients for a year, Nunnally came to Waldo and proposed they work together.

At first the mum business was limited to just one bedroom in Waldo’s home, but it has crept into the large common room on the second floor – and taken over.

Last year, the pair created 83 mums and garters, and they’re on track to do the same this year with 60 orders and 20 on a waiting list. They could do more, Waldo said, but they refuse to make two alike.

“We try not to use the same ribbon on two girls’ at the same school,” Nunnally said.

The pair don’t advertise, just go by word of mouth. Waldo did set up a Facebook page, Randi’s Mums, so teens could get some ideas before they order. The pair takes orders from Mansfield, Legacy, Lake Ridge, Godley, Arlington Martin, Burleson, Benbrook, Midlothian, Midlothian Heritage, Oakridge, Pantego, Arlington, Grace Prep and Irving MacArthur.

Cost depends on the size and the details with a one flower mum running about $175, two flowers $225, three flowers $275, four flowers $350 and a mega-mum Texas shape starting at $500. The most expensive they have done was for $1,000.

“My favorite from last year was a one-flower with all shades of purple,” Waldo said.

“I was proud of the Texas one I did last year,” Nunnally said. “It was a garter in pewter and gray.”

This year, the duo’s first homecoming is Sept. 12, and the final Oct. 24.

“I sparkle for six months,” Waldo said. “I like it until November. Then I’m tired and I close the door.”

Nunnally promises herself that she will quit every year, but she keeps coming back.

And the mums keep getting bigger and more intricate.

“When I started, making them wasn’t so crazy,” Waldo said.

“Mansfield just seems to like them bigger,” Nunnally said. “Each generation just wants more.”