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The Do’s and Don’ts of Giving a Toast

A wedding is a wonderful time to tell a couple how much you love and appreciate them, especially through a well thought out toast! A toast can either be planned or totally spur of the moment, here are some basic do’s and don’ts of giving a toast that will ensure that you neither make a fool of yourself and/or the newlyweds.

DO: Introduce Yourself

By introducing yourself you are able to give the guests context of who you are and how you know the happy couple. This will help give background to what you are going to say during your toast and it will also give your toast and thoughts some credibility.

DON’T: Assume They Know

Assuming that guests know who you are is a mistake. You could be anywhere from the bride’s uncle to a random hobo that got dressed up to get some free food to the guests’ minds. So instead of remaining a mystery for the rest of the night, state who you are and that will lead to less confusion and wrong assumptions made by the guests.

 

DO: Tell a Story

If you are planning on telling the wedding guests how great of a person Jim is, give them a story and some background on your statement. This will help them understand how great he is and give them evidence of it. Telling a story will also most likely boost Jim’s ego if it is about how awesome he is.

DON’T: Say Two Words

Simply saying “I like Jim, he is a pretty cool dude.” is not exactly toast worthy. It is most likely that everyone in that room is there because Jim is a cool dude, so amp up your intensity level if this was all that you had planned to say when starting to tap your champagne glass.

 

DO: Use Humor

Who doesn’t love a funny story or a good pun? Wedding guests will laugh at anything vaguely funny because of the happy atmosphere (and the open bar). Take a chance and tell that wedding pun you have been dying to say ever since the bride and groom got engaged, you are guaranteed to get at least a few chuckles.

DON’T: Say Crass Jokes

Especially if there are kids at the wedding, crass jokes have no part in the joyful day. Take the classy route and avoid dirty humor that will only leave everyone uncomfortably shifting in their seats and dodging eye contact with everyone at their table.

 

DO: Compliment the Bride and Groom

The whole point of a toast is to show your appreciation of the bride and groom, so be sure to throw in complements in there that will give the bride and groom the warm and fuzzies. This can be any individual compliment for the bride or groom or it could even be a “you guys complete each other and make love look easy” type of compliment.

DON’T: Over-Embarrass the Bride and Groom

The wedding guests probably don’t need to know about the time that Sarah stole that pair of Victoria’s Secret underwear or that memory of how Luke broke his leg when he was trying to unicycle across a frozen lake. These memories are best kept secret between you and the bride/groom only, period.

 

DO: Get to the Point

Although story-telling is a key part in making a great toast, it should not be the whole toast. The guests are more interested in what you appreciate about the lovely couple, so make it a point to get to the punchline of your toast before anyone starts falling asleep.

DON’T: Drag on, and on, and on, and on.

A toast is not supposed to take up the entirety of the wedding reception, and to be honest, your story about the time that Caleb gave you a piggy back ride for a mile when you twisted your ankle is not all that interesting after you have been telling it for an extended period of time. So get to the point and wrap it up while there is still interest.

Now that you have read the do’s and don’ts of giving a toast, we are happy to tell you that you are now properly equipped to speak at the wedding! Your toast will be the best of the night now that you have knowledge of how to make it absolutely perfect.

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