How to Give a Wedding Toast

Wedding is the most important occasion in the life of an individual. After this, he is never alone; there is always a partner to share all the happiness as well as the pain that life gives. If you are a close friend or family member of the bride or the groom, such as the best man or the bridesmaid, it is expected of you to give a toast at their wedding and bless them with your good wishes. While dressing up and going to a wedding is easy, giving a toast is something that scares many people away. To help all such people, we have provided great tips and ideas in the lines below, for giving the perfect wedding toast.

How To Give A Wedding Toast

The first step that you need to take is to write down what you intend to say. Getting your thoughts down on paper would not only help you refine them, but also avoid the embarrassment of being dumbfounded in front of a large number of people.
Like a speech, a wedding toast also has an opening, a body and an end. Make sure to write the note accordingly. In case you are falling short of the ideas on opening line, you can make use of a touching quotation on love and marriage.
Go through the list of the invitees for the reception. If you know only 50 percent of the people about to be present there, it is better to introduce yourself in the opening lines i.e. your name and your relation with the bride/groom. Then, move on to complement the wedding ceremony i.e. how wonderful and touching it was.
While writing the toast, think about the positive aspects of the couple. Why do you like the groom? What is so special about the bride? Talk about the two as a couple and how they complement each other. You can also delve on a memory that includes both of them.
Make sure to complement the bride. It is sort of an "unspoken rule". However, you need to make sure that it is genuine, so that you do not end up looking like a liar in front of the guests. You can say something about her beauty, smile, the happiness that is reflecting from her face, etc.
Do not include topics that are racy or embarrassing. How you had a great time on a bachelor trip to Hawaii or how you girls went drooling over every guy you saw on a vacation to Rio de Janeiro is something that no couple would want to hear about on their wedding day.
Any talk about the ex girlfriends, boyfriends, or spouses of the couple is definitely something that is not to be mentioned in a wedding toast. Also out of bounds are statements about cost of the wedding, wedding gifts, future plans of the couple or their honeymoon trip.
Make sure to thank the hosts, be it the bride’s family or the newly wedded couple, for the excellent party. Express your delight for their hospitality and well as their good taste. This is something very important, which most of the people forget to do.
Close your wedding toast on a high and hopeful note. Express your best wishes for the couple's happy, healthy and prosperous future. Ask everybody present in the party to join you in the wedding toast, lift your Champagne glass, and say, "To (name of bride) and (name of groom)...."

Some Tips

Make sure to rehearse your wedding toast a number of times, before the wedding date. This will make sure that you do not resort to your notes in the middle of the toast.
It is a wedding toast and not a speech, though quite similar. Ensure that it does not stretch on for more than 5 minutes.
While giving the toast, always focus on the couple. Keep your eyes fixed on them, while glancing at the guests occasionally.
Avoid talking about your own marriage or relationship. It is the time to convey your best wishes for the couple.
Do not get drunk. If you want to gulp down a number of drinks, at least wait till you have given the wedding toast.

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