Tips for the toast - love your list
Filed under: Etiquette, Receptions, Wedding party
The wine-kind, not the kitchen appliance.One of the traditional duties of the male contingent, toasting can be done either by a specially-appointed (or even hired) MC, but most often it's done by the best man.
Anywhere you look, you can find a list of who toasts whom, in what order, and with what. Thing is, all the lists are different. Who toasts whom, in what order? Who knows?
This can be a good thing. With so many possibilities, you can do it any way you like! Another piece of even better news:
It is not up to you, the best man/MC, to decide who toasts. The couple does that, and then gives you the list. If you haven't received a list a week or so before the wedding, ask about it. At the very least, they can give you direction (and contact information) for the people they'd like to be on the list.
Once you have the list, you'd be wise to contact the people on it. You want to make sure people aren't duplicating stories, and that they know who exactly they're toasting. You'll want to make sure they understand toasts are to be short. Fifteen to forty seconds is perfect. Two minutes is almost always too long, and long toasts are almost always boring.
During the reception, love your list. Your job is to see that people stick to it. You direct people to (and sometimes away from) the microphone. You might make short introductions. If you're a little shy, consider it like this: You're not in the spotlight, you're just directing traffic.
Once you have the list, you'd be wise to contact the people on it. You want to make sure people aren't duplicating stories, and that they know who exactly they're toasting. You'll want to make sure they understand toasts are to be short. Fifteen to forty seconds is perfect. Two minutes is almost always too long, and long toasts are almost always boring.
During the reception, love your list. Your job is to see that people stick to it. You direct people to (and sometimes away from) the microphone. You might make short introductions. If you're a little shy, consider it like this: You're not in the spotlight, you're just directing traffic.
Comments [0]