So, you are finally Mr. and Mrs! After you are finished with your DFW wedding ceremony, and before you go hoppin’ on the dance floor, there is one wedding tradition that still needs your attention: wedding speech, or toasts.
It is important to carve out a timeline for the key speakers while organizing the evening schedule. Generally, the key speakers at wedding toasts are your parents, the maid of honor, and the best man other than the two of you. But how much time should be assigned to each speaker? It’s true that impromptu wedding speeches can be really sweet, but you don’t want to stretch it so long that your guests grow weary, and at the same time, you don’t want to rush it.
A successful wedding hinges on being timely and properly planned. Here are some tips from the experts on how you should assign the wedding speeches.
The Welcome Speech:
The rule of thumb is whoever hosts the wedding event should get to speak first. The first toast is given as soon as all the guests are seated, and it is both a ‘congratulation’ to the newly married couple and a hearty welcome to the guests. Parents generally make the first toast.
If both the bride’s and groom’s parents want to speak, bride’s parents should go first, followed by groom’s parents. If yours is a same-sex wedding, it’s totally upto you whose parents get to speak first.
The Blessing Speech:
It’s not much of a speech per say, but if you have invited someone to bless the wedding meal, this is the time for it – right after the welcome toast but before the dinner is served, obviously.
The Maid of Honor’s and Best Man Speeches:
If it’s a seated dinner, the right time for the Maid of Honor’s and the Best man’s speeches is right after the entrees have been served. This ensures that there will be no interruptions from the waitstaff for serving or clearing the meal.
If it’s not a seated dinner, then wait until all the guests have picked something to chomp on from the buffet table (or the food truck), and the wait staff have stopped making the rounds. This makes sure that the speakers will have guests’ full attention.
The Newly Married Couple’s Speeches:
Even if you’re hesitant to give a full blown speech, it is expected that the newlyweds will at least take a minute to thank their parents and guests who are gathered together to celebrate the beginning of your new life. You can give this welcome toast right after your Maid of Honor and the Best Man are finished with their toasts, or you can give your thanks right before you cut the wedding cake.
If you’re wondering about the right duration of a wedding speech, 3 to 5 minutes is the sweet spot. Also, let respective people know that they will be speaking at the toast time, so they can prepare a speech in advance.
