Attending the wedding of sister can be a lot of fun because you just get to sit back and let her soak up all the attention and love on her big day. Even if you have always been competitive, her wedding is one day where you want her to shine. Many sisters are so busy sitting back watching all of the planning for the big day that they forget that they also have something important to plan for: a sister of the bride speech. If you happen to be the maid or matron of honor you have probably thought about this, but it is also customary for the sister of the bride to give a speech and wish her sister and her new brother in law well in their new life together.
The sister of the bride speech process isn’t all that difficult really; you just need to break it down. If you aren’t the maid of honor you may just need to make a quick sister speech at the wedding and then you can pass on the microphone to the next family member to let them sweat a bit! Still, you should have something planned so that your nerves don’t get the best of you. Your speech needn’t be overly polished or cheesy if that is not your style, then again if you want to get sentimental you can!
It’s a good idea to start out with formal congratulations. You can tell the bride and the groom that you were just as nervous as they were, and that you are glad that all of their hard work and planning has turned out so beautifully. Your sister may like hearing from you that things look great, and are exactly as she planned. Then, you’ll want to make the speech more personal, since this is your sister that you are speaking to. If you have a story about weddings from when you were young, like how you used to share your fantasy wedding ideas with one another or something like that it will spark fond memories for your sister and share a little something with the rest of the family and friends and the reception. Personalizing the speech is important, because you aren’t just that fifth cousin who was invited; you are the sister of the bride!
To close the speech you can tell your sister that you can only hope to look as beautiful as she does when you get married, if you aren’t already. Also, welcome your new brother in law to the family. If you share a common sense of humor don’t hesitate to make a few clean jokes and then congratulate the couple and pass the torch to the next family member so that they can express their congratulations as well.
Many sisters feel as though they need to write some prose or something to that effect for a sister of the bride speech, but that is not necessary. Of course, if you want to write a poem for the new couple, that would be great and very sincere. But, you can go casual and simply tell your sister and brother in law that you are happy for them! Since you are the sister, toast wedding congratulations and a bit more and you are off the hook. Just make it sincere and let both your sister and your brother in law know that you are happy for them, in whatever style most suits both you and them.