I didn’t pay much attention to other peoples toasts at weddings until my husband proposed to me. Then there were no weddings to attend until my own, which meant that I didn’t have the chance to see a wedding speech in action until my big day, so I went on Youtube and watched other people online to get a better idea.

Some of those speeches were pretty good. There were loads of best man speeches to look at as well as quite a few farther of the bride speeches, but not a lot for the bride herself. My maid of honour was also finding it rather difficult to know what her speech should include.

Don’t Forget Wedding Etiquette

There is a certain amount of wedding etiquette when it comes to making wedding toasts. I had no idea, but getting the order right for thank you’s alone will help your speech sound a lot more natural. Another great tip was ending on a high note, such as a joke is always a good idea and for anyone not really able to put their thoughts into words, copying someone else’s words can be a great help too. Just think of your favourite love song or a memorable peom for inspiration.

Deliver Your Speech Like a Pro

I think that the biggest help that I got from the book we got was the chapter on how to remain calm and how to deliver the speech like a pro – even when you have no public talking skills and have never stood before people to make a toast. Just being prepared and keeping the alcohol to a minimum until your bridal speech is over will help, but there are so many other great ways to keep the nerves at bay.
Although I was the one to get the Wedding Speech Guide Book, the whole family landed up using it, from best man all the way to father of the bride. There were so many really good wedding speech examples that catered for everyone that we all managed to put together totally unique and rather entertaining – even if I say so myself – speeches.

Watch a few wedding speech videos I’ve put together to see how other ladies did it.

Here is a small collection of different one liners that I have found.  They work really well because they are quoted by famous people and will appeal to just about any age.  No offending any member of the family.

Great One Liners:-

• Husbands are like fires. They go out if left unattended. -Zsa Zsa Gabor

• Most girls seem to marry men who happen to be like their fathers. Maybe that’s why so many mothers cry at weddings! – Jenny Éclair

• A young couple, just married, were in their honeymoon suite on their wedding night. As ____ undressed for bed, her husband (who was a burly bruiser) tossed his pants to his bride and said, “Here, put these on.” She put them on and the waist was twice the size of her body. “I can’t wear your pants,” she said. “That’s right,” said the husband, “and don’t you ever forget it. I’m the man who wears the pants in this family!” With that, she flipped him her panties and said, “Try these on.” He tried them on, and found he could only get them on as far as his kneecaps. He said, “Hell, I can’t get into your panties!” She said, “That’s right and that’s the way it’s going to be until your damn attitude changes.

• Be plain in dress, and sober in your diet; In short, my deary, kiss me, and be quiet. — Lady Mary Wortley Montagu

• The brain is a wonderful thing. It never stops functioning from the time you’re born until the moment you stand up to make a speech. – Herbert V Prochnow and Herbert V Prochnow Jnr

• I think men who have a pierced ear are better prepared for marriage. They’ve experienced pain and bought jewellery. (Rita Rudner)

• A husband is like a fire, he goes out when unattended. (Evan Esar)

Just a few ideas to get your bride speech going.  Think about personal experiences, funny happenings and crazy things you have done to give you an idea of a great story to tell.  Once you have a good idea of what you want to say, then you’ll also want to make sure that you don’t forget anyone or anything important.  Knowing the basic structure of a bride speech will help you include everything.