“To the bride and groom!” – Simplifying toasts & speeches
Toasts and speeches never go out of style at weddings, from a thank you from the bride and groom to the best man telling his most embarrassing stories, the toasts are a staple to wedding formalities. Complimentary champagne toasts are always included for the guests at Edgewood weddings but you may ask, who normally does toasts or speeches? Traditionally the best man (or men) and maid of honor (or maids-of-honor) are expected to do a toast but others should never be counted out either. The parents of the bride and/or groom, siblings of the couple and pastors, priests or officiants all make the list of those who can formally give a toast. Who do you choose? Keep it simple. Think about your bridal party and who is willing to write a speech and actually speak in front of all of your guests. I would be considerate of the fact that maybe your best man is too nervous to make a speech instead consider asking another groomsmen, possibly the one who has known the groom the longest, to step in instead with the same going for the maid of honor.
How long is a toast and what goes into it? It is an unspoken rule of thumb to notify your best man and maid of honor of how many minutes you’d like the toasts to stay within. Normally a typical toast takes about 3-5 minutes of time, not to exceed the 5-minute mark and should be told to those making speeches ahead of time. Not only if this important to keep guest’s attention but it is important for us as a venue to stay within a timeframe for any formalities done prior to dinner service. As a wedding coordinator, I have seen all types of speeches and unfortunately there is no structure to follow but keeping things short and sweet is always the best way to go. Consider adding your first memory of the bride or groom, tell a short story from each phase of life you’ve known them, recall how you met the bride or groom and be sure to add in something funny and something heartfelt.
In lieu of speeches- If your bridal party does not want to do a short toast or speech, there are always different ways to implement a tribute to the bride and groom in other ways. In the past we have had some pretty outstanding occurrences in lieu of a toast including the groomsmen singing acapella, the best man and maid of honor doing a rap where they infused the bride and grooms name into the lyrics, slideshows and surprises such as mascots of a favorite sports team or a video from a loved one who couldn’t make the wedding. All of these can be put in place of a toast, be creative and feel free to make this portion of the day your own!