WRITING A SPEECH FOR AN INTIMATE WEDDING

Intimate weddings are fantastic. They are super romantic, allow everyone to catch up properly and usually cost less to boot. If you’re giving a speech at such a wedding, you might want to tailor it to suit your smaller audience…

Be more personal and specific
It’s difficult to be personal and involve everyone if you’re giving a speech to hundreds, but bring that number down to 20 and it becomes perfectly plausible. A small number of guests allow you to, if appropriate, mention everybody in a personal manner that’ll make them smile. It’s also likely that a lot of guests will be very familiar with one another and may have plenty of shared memories and experiences which can be beautifully referenced in your speech.
Ditch the microphone
When getting your message across to a room packed full of people, it’s understandable that a microphone would come in handy. But when you’re sharing your words with a select few, there is less need for one. Instead, practise enunciating and speaking at a good level for the size of the room. As you start your speech, remember to ask if everyone can hear you before carrying on.
Make eye contact
When giving a speech in a room full of eyes it’s hard to make eye contact with many people. But that is another benefit of giving a speech to just a few; you can make and maintain eye contact with everyone in the room. Each time you share an anecdote or memory about a specific person you can look at them and check out their reaction. This will give your speech and the atmosphere a much more intimate vibe.
Write cue cards
Just because your audience is small doesn’t mean that nerves will naturally flee. To reassure yourself before you start, write some back-up cue cards. Even if you think you don’t need them, it’s worth doing – you’ll be very grateful if you start to stumble a few minutes in.
Keep it snappy
While we’re all for personalised, specific speeches that share relevant stories and get the tears flowing, it’s best to keep things snappy. Far better to stick to a five or ten minute speech which leaves people happy crying than drag things on for half an hour and risk boredom from the crowd.
Get feedback
Before you give your speech, get feedback from someone you trust. This is a worthwhile piece of advice for giving a speech to any size of audience, but it’s worth repeating while on the subject! If you’re not sure whether a certain joke will go down well, it’s always best to get a second opinion so you can tweak accordingly.

If you would like more info about our intimate wedding venue in Cornwall, check out the details here www.lowerbarnswedding.co.uk.

We also do B&B, so if you would like to come and stayover to see what you we are all about, check out our rooms and facilities here www.lowerbarns.co.uk or call us on 01726 844881 to talk through your ideas.

Love Janie x

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