Money Saving Tip

Most couples want to have a Champagne or Sparking Wine Toast at their wedding but so many guests just take a sip during the toast and that is it - the rest is a waste and a burden on your checkbook.

To save money omit the Champagne all together and have them toast with what they have already or if you really want it - have the wait staff just put a little in everyones glass - don't fill normally.

Tips on Toasts

I know I have discussed this before and you know I feel strongly about appropriate toasts at weddings. I was going over this with a client so I thought I would revisit it here.

Make sure you determine the order of people toasting before the wedding day.
If the FOB plans to welcome or toast he should go first, possibly before dinner is served.
The best man should toast next or before cake is cut and served. The MOH can also go at this time.

(Keep it short, make it personal, mention both the Groom & the Bride, speak loud and finish by wishing couple well and asking guests to stand and toast. The bride and groom stay seated as they are being toasted to.)

Other people that might want to toast would be the groom to his bride and her family. Other toasts should be done at the rehearsal dinner. You want to get to the dancing and having fun.

Doesn't sound too hard does it?

Grooms Guide

Most of the time we talk about the bride, her dress, her bridesmaids and other decisions about her...well what about the groom? I am going to do a series on the groom and/or the guys in the wedding.

I found this article in Mens Health Magazine - great suggestions.
Guys Guide to Surviving Your Buddies Big Day

My favorites are:

Toasting-the ideal speech lasts 3 minutes or less. Segue from humorous, PG-rated stories into tender moments. "Now that's what I call love," or "And yet, she still said yes." Remember, it's not a roast or a bachelor party. Keep it clean. "Don't say anything you wouldn't be comfortable whispering into the bride's mother's ear," says Roney.

(I just wish the BM at our wedding listened to this advice - we still aren't speaking...)

or

Dancing-It's your best chance of wooing a bridesmaid, so ease on out there, Astaire. If your proficiency peaked in junior high, embrace slow songs or ones that revolve around jumping ("Shout"), simple hand movements ("YMCA"), headbanging ("You Shook Me All Night Long"), and hand grabbing ("We Are Family"), suggests Craig Michaels, author of Thirty to Wife: The Tell-All Groom's Guide to Weddings. And know your own limitations. "Never slide across the dance floor like you're stealing third," he says.