Alabama Wedding Videographer
Giving a wedding toast can be a daunting task, but it doesn’t have to be scary! The key is to prepare, practice, and PUT THE DRINK DOWN. (Except to toast with!) In this blog post, we’re going to help you give an AMAZING wedding toast. We’re talkin’ laughter, tears, and all the pats on the back. A BEAMING BRIDE AND GROOM.
In fact, if you do it right, you may just solidify your spot as the favorite friend. (imagine all the amazing Christmas presents you will be getting if you blow everyone away with this speech! No more generic gift boxes for you honey, you’re gettin’ that Kendra Scott you’ve been eyeing. No doubt about it!)
We have heard all of the speeches. We’ve heard the storylines, the raps, the awkward inside jokes….and after all of the research we’re here to help you!
So, here are our Top 5 Tips for giving the wedding toast everyone will be talking about—and in a good way.
“For those of you that don’t know me……..”
Every wedding toast beginning, ever.
Where Do I Begin?
- Briefly explain your relationship with the couple. Points go to those who can do this without using the old crutch “For those of you that don’t know me.” Want some ideas for other ways to introduce yourself?
- The straight forward approach– Good evening everybody, I’m Megan, the groom’s big sister.
- The Forrest Gump Approach– “I don’t remember being born. I don’t recall what I got for my first Christmas, and I don’t know when I went on my first outdoor picnic. But I do remember when I heard the sweetest voice in the wide world.”We was like peas and carrots, Jenny and Me. 😉
- The Storyteller- When I first learned I was going to be a big sister, I wasn’t thrilled. A new person taking up the attention in this family? I don’t think so. BUT, once my brother arrived, I couldn’t have been happier to share the limelight.
- Talk about how the couple met (If it’s appropriate and has been OK’d by the couple! No need to out your best friend’s affinity for Sky Bar in front of her Southern Baptist grandparents. 😅)
If you weren’t present when they met, then now is a great time to talk about how you met their significant other and how much you like them.
We loved how Roxi & Ryan’s friends and family explained their relationship in their wedding toasts! Roxi & Ryan | Elegant Dothan Wedding
Wedding Speeches tell a Story!
- Talk about the good things they bring out in each other. Is your friend typically shy, but around her fiancé she just shines? Does he have a soft side that she has brought out in him? What about their strengths together as a couple, what can they do better together than apart? Add this to your wedding toast!
How sweet was this speech from Cheyenne’s Dad at their rehearsal dinner? Cheyenne & John | Lake Tuscaloosa Wedding on a Private Estate
- Stay away from the embarrassing or scandalous. When in doubt, save the scintillating details for the bachelorette or bachelor party, now is not the time to go into those! Run it through what we call “the dinner table filter.” If it would be uncomfortable to those at half the dinner table on a given weeknight, it probably isn’t acceptable now, in front of 200+ family & friends.
A great example of this: the way Molly’s MOH reminisced on their friendship! Molly & Marcus | Gatsby-Inspired Savannah, Ga Wedding
- Tell them you love them. There aren’t many times when you get to point-blank remind a friend or family member what they mean to you. Use this opportunity to do just that! It’s an exciting time in their life, show that you support them and love them unconditionally.
Bonus Wedding Toast Tips:
- Use the Mic Stand! We spend a good deal of time planning the location and lighting of our clients’ speeches. We work with the DJs to ensure good audio quality, and have placed a Mic stand in the place where you should be!
This isn’t a one-man comedy show in Vegas, you do not need to “work the room” and your friend’s wedding videographer (Me 😍) will love you forever if you stay in the spot she carefully designed to make you look and sound your best! Also, this will result in the mic stand freesing up your hands, one for your toast notes, the other for your drink to toast with! 👏🏻*Disclaimer- limit the drinks if possible! No one wants a sloppy speech-giver due to early cocktails…*
- Don’t touch the microphone! If you need help adjusting the mic, just signal the DJ or Videographer. We want you comfortable, and seen. But touch that mic and we are going to cringe—along with all the guests that just got a loud THUMPBUMPBUMP in their ears as a result.
- Speak into the microphone. If it’s on a mic stand, stay directly behind it, not beside it or in front of it. Most importantly, you don’t have to have it touching your chin, but close quarters is best! We want to be able to hear you! (Most Noteworthy- tell Uncle Bob that while his voice is loud, he STILL has to use the mic.)
- Take a deep breath and relax. Your friend or family member getting married chose YOU to speak about their relationship. What an incredible honor! You’ve got this!
Not having speeches at the Reception? Let us come film them at the rehearsal! Those words are too precious to miss, like Katrina & Adam did!
