Maid Of Honor Speech And The Rest Of The Duties
Whenever someone is asked to be a maid of honor, it is a time of both shock and pride. You must be prepared to invest both your time and your money. How much will depend on how much help you get from to two parties’ friends and relatives but you are still going to have to do the lion’s share. Many people think that the matron / maid of honor only has input on the day of the wedding (as this is only when they see you in action). In reality, your job starts just after the couple have decided to marry. You would be amazed at how many things are the responsibility of the maid of honor. Your job starts as early as the first wedding planning task. Your organizational skills will be termed on continually as the big day draws near. You must be prepared to do many things by yourself. As maid of honor, just what are you expected to do?
You will be helping the bride with a lot of important decisions. These things will range from major decisions such as the ceremony and / or reception venue down to small things like wedding favors or table displays. It’s quite a range. It will be a pain at times but ultimately it will be very rewarding. I think you need to be objective in your decisions. If you do not tell the truth or give solid opinions it will come back and bite you.
Once those things are done, it’s time for the “proper” work to start. Basically you’ve got to keep your eye on everyone else involved. One of the most important duties is to double check that all of the guests remember when and where the wedding is taking place. At the same time do a head count to check who is coming and who cannot make it. The seating plan will take some handling. Find out who gets on and who does not (you don’t want fights at the wedding!
As Maid of Honor, some jobs will be your speciality. These are the bachelorette party and the bridal shower. Don’t overlook this one. The thank you notes for the guests. You cannot do this if you do not keep a track of which person sent which gift! Although tired but happy you must remember that you are so far, only half way through your maid of honor duties.
You would be excused for thinking that all your work is done now that the big day has arrived. You could not be more wrong. This is when there is far more potential for mishaps and trouble. As maid of honor you have a lot more things to do.
Aside from getting yourself ready, as well as the wedding partys you oversee, your duties as Maid of Honor are in assisting the bride, being at her side throughout the day. Because you will be very busy and a little stressed, too, it is a good idea to have prepared some type of checklist for yourself, to ensure every last minute detail is tended to. Help the bride with her wedding ceremony gown, veil and makeup, plus anything else she might need. Let her know you are there for her if she wants anything at all.
So, what sort of things do you need to do on the day itself? Well, you’ve got…
Look after the bride’s bouquet and make sure her train is OK (and no one treads on it).
Hold onto the ring your bride is to exchange with the groom.
Take control of the tossing of the bouquet.
Organize the cutting of the cake.
Organize any special dances at the ceremony.
Make sure no one touches the money or presents on the gift table.
Line up the friends and relatives for the photographs.
(when that is all done) pull off the best matron of honor speech ever.
When you have covered everything, you will be able to let your hair down and enjoy yourself (assuming that you have some energy left after doing those things).