I am sure you have been to a wedding reception in Michigan before, and you had to deal with the “clinking” of the glasses to watch the bride and groom kiss. Every 5 minutes someone will start the headache by tapping their champagne glass repeatedly until everyone in the room follows suite. How do you avoid the clinking of the glasses? Read our article below for some great tips that will keep your guests involved and you guys kissing.

A Little History

Many of you are probably wondering how the whole tradition of guests clinking their glasses at wedding receptions started. The “clinking” of glasses originates back to medieval times when wine was usually poisoned. If a host wanted to prove to their guests that the wine wasn’t poisoned, he would pour some of the guest’s wine into his glass and drink it first.  If the guests trusted their host they would clink glasses when the host offered his glass for a sample. Hence the clinking of glasses has become a sign of trust, honesty, and toast to good health.

Sing a Love Song

One great way to avoid the clinking of the glasses is to have tables sing a song with the word love in it instead. Not only is this fun, but it gives guests the chance to mingle and brainstorm a song together. It is great to do this during dinner when soft music is playing in the background. Next thing you know, tables are standing up and singing, in perfect harmony… I can tell you one thing, it is not always perfect harmony. Some common songs guests have come up with on their own are listed below:

All For One – I Can Love You Like That
Elvis Presely – I Can’t Help Falling In Love with You
Norah Jones – Love Me Tender
Etta James – At Last
Barney – I Love You (I know what you’re thinking)
Frank Sinatra – Love & Marriage
B52′s – Love Shack
The Outfield – Your Love
Joann Jett – I Love Rock n Roll
Sarah Bareilles – Love Song
Countours – Do You Love Me
Beyonce – Crazy In Love
Haddaway – What Is Love
The Darkness – I Believe in a Thing Called Love
Rod Stewart – Have I Told You Lately That I Love You
soft Cell – Tainted Love
Tim McGraw Ft. Faith Hill – It’s Your Love
Maroon 5 – This Love
Lady Gaga – Love Game
Doors – Love Her Madly
Bob Marley – Is This Love
Bon Jovi – You Give Love A Bad Name
R. Kelly – Step In The Name Of Love
The Shirellas – Going To The Chapel Of Love
Four Tops – I Can’t Help Myself
2Pac – California Love
Diana Ross – Stop In The Name of Love
Harry Connick Jr – Receipe For Love
Tim McGraw – I Like It I Love It
Elton John – Can You Feel The Love Tonight

Have Guests Tell A Story

Another unique way to avoid the clinking of the glasses is to have guests tell a story about you over the microphone during dinner. This quick speech does not have to be formal, it can simply be about a funny story, something sentimental, or just some insight into the guests of honor. It can be either about the bride or the groom. This is great, because it breaks up the typical down time people experience during dinner. On average, you will get 8-12 people to volunteer to talk about. But be careful what you wish for, some of these stories might be embarrassing!

Give Them Something to Ring

Get it, ring! Besides your wedding bands, you can put little bells on the table that replace the clinking of the glasses. This is more common than the two suggestions above. There are companies online that specialize in selling these bells for your wedding day. You can even put sentences or photos about wedding day attached to the bells. A nice alternative to glass clinking, but it still might give you a headache.

Mirror Kiss

Majority of people attending a reception will bring a date. So why not have the guests kiss, and have the guests of honor recreate the kiss. What will happen is that the guests will walk to the head table, do a kiss a certain way, and have the bride and groom recreate that kiss. Variations include dip+kiss, spin+kiss, long kiss, slow run towards each other+kiss. I think the last one is the most hilarious!

These are just 4 ways to switch up the traditional activity of tapping the glasses. There is no right or wrong way to do anything for a wedding, just your way. If you have a comment or suggestion on how to avoid guests from tapping their glasses during a toast, then feel free to leave it below.