Wedding toasts can be a fun time for everybody where individuals get the chance to celebrate the wedding couple and also those people who are or are unable to attend the wedding.
The wedding toasts can be at any time of your choosing like anything else with the wedding.
Generally the toasts will be done either before or after the meal but feel free to do whatever suits you even if you feel you would like people to get up and make toasts during the meal.
If the food has been prepared and your guests are hungry and waiting, then it might be wise to leave the toasts until after the main course as often people get a bit agitated if they are waiting for their food and it is being delayed by somebody who is talking.
Sometimes even the best laid plans change in the course of the day, and when that happens you really just need to go with the flow and enjoy the occasion without getting stressed.
If you have any specific people you would like to toast yourself this should also be listed in your wedding plans to make sure that you don’t forget on the day and it is a wise decision to keep a little note with you with reminders of particular aspects such as this that you don’t want to miss out on doing.
You might also like to consider nominating a person as toastmaster who can control the toasts and the people talking and ensure that the whole reception process runs smoothly just as a conductor would do with an orchestra.
Ask friends or family to see if anybody would like the job as toastmaster taking into account the fact that most people will generally prefer not to speak in front of a crowd.
If you can’t get someone you know to act as toastmaster then you might need to hire a professional for the job.
It will cost more money but at least you know it will be a polished performance and they usually know how to ‘work’ the crowd if you give them sufficient input beforehand.