Ever gave a speech at a wedding?

#16
I was the maid of honor when my mom remarried two years ago. I knew I would have to give a short speech at the reception, so I wrote a few things down beforehand, to make things a little easier for myself.

It helps to say a personal (but not too personal) anecdote about the couple, something that you can turn into a lighthearted joke. For example, my mom and stepdad dated nine (!) years before marrying, so during the speech I said something along the lines of, "When my mom told me that she and William were getting married, I looked at both of them, rolled my eyes and said, 'It's about darn time!'" :P

I also said something about how blessed our "extended" family is (my stepdad has four children, both older and younger than I am). They came up to me afterward and said how much they liked being included in the speech.

Most of all, what you want to do is highlight and celebrate the love and joy between the newlywed couple, along with those they invited to share in the most special day of their lives :biggrin:

And yes, definitely try to slow down when speaking! Makes you come across as less nervous.
 
#17
I was MOH for my sister.

I wrote mine down and when I got ready (my family knows me well! ;)) I apologized in advance for it being a little long...but it was a fun-filled speech and I didn't lose anyone's interest at all!

I cried, of course I did! But that was to be expected!

Just look at the bride if you have to! You aren't really talking to everyone else, just her!
 
#18
I gave my MoH speech at my friend's wedding and what I did was, like tyler said - start with several funny anecdotes, but end on a sweet note - in my case it was about how I KNOW they'll last because all the things they've already been through have cemented their relationship. It went down well cos I was complimented after by loadsa ppl. phew!! :smile:

But on a practical note, I wrote the entire speech down (just in case I got nervous and forgot everything) but had like bullet points at the top of each section so I could do it "off the cuff" without reading it too (which is what I ended up doing). Also, try looking at just the bride and groom when you're talking when you're nervous so you'll remember whom it's for, and nothing else really matters. And if you want to pan around the room, just focus above people's heads, or at specific friends who are prepped before hand to be encouraging (to nod their heads when you look at them etc). Yes, as you can tell, I'm neurotic and wanted to make sure it went well for my bestie!

HTH!
 
#20
Yea, I had to give a speech at 2 weddings. Don't worry! If the bride chose you, that means you know her pretty well (she is your bff!) and you will come up with some good wishes and anecdotes. Add a bit of humor and there you go. The two speeches I gave were completely different because although I was close to both of them, one of the girls I met in college and the other I knew since the 3rd grade. All the common aspects have
-First open with something heartfelt (or humorous). Thank the guests for coming, say how great the bride and groom look...
-Talk about what you want to say (how they met, how you know the bride...include some stories, wishes for the future, etc)
-Close with good wishes and a toast

Try to actually write a speech instead of just notes of what to say. That way, you won't be at a loss for words. You don't have to memorize it, but it's good to memorize the first lines and the main ideas.

Good luck on your speech!
 
#21
Great advice everyone! I just emailed the bride since I'm helping her out with a few more things and poor thing is so nervous! (Brings back memories to my own wedding. lol!)

With your inspiration, I've plowed through writing my speech and am pretty happy with the content. Will take the rest of this time before the wedding to spruce it up, practice it out loud, and get some feedback from DH and maybe another friend who's in the wedding. Oh and maybe draw up a few cue cards just in case I draw a blank ;)

Thanks again all and it was really, really sweet reading all of your own wonderful experiences!

Sigh. I LOVE weddings!
 
#22
I was MOH at my college best friend's wedding just a few weeks ago. Here's what I learned from my experience:

1. If you haven't started writing your speech, definitely start now. What i did was created a list of things I wanted to say and then worked on the wording/placement throughout the week.

2. It's always good to keep the wedding speeches short and sweet. You can start off by introducing yourself, talk about how you met your bff, share a story or two about your bff (and how wonderful she is), briefly mention about her fiance and how thrilled you are about the marriage, and then conclude with a toast.

3. Print out a copy of your speech in big fonts (I typed mine up in Arial size 16). That way you can always read off of the paper even if you started to tear up. Along the same lines, use waterproof mascara for the day.
 
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