Real Wedding – Aimee & Nick, St Kilda VIC
Chic monochromatic magic makes the timeless vision that is Aimee and Nick’s wedding celebration. As they make their forever promises on the sunlight-filled deck of The Prince in St Kilda, surrounded by friends and family, there is an effervescent energy in every moment, captured to perfection by photographer superstar Tess Follett.
With his baby daughter in his arms, Nick is full of emotion and looks the part in a sleek black suit, while Aimee shines in her glam gown by Kyha Studios and veil by Amelie George Bridal. Ravishing radiance layered with contemporary elegance, she looks every bit a fresh, modern bride.
Touches of blush add tonal texture to the floral palette, while crisp noir decor and signage anchor the effect in understated sophistication.
The sweet emotion of the day is kept buoyant in the talented hands of music legends Hey Jack, transitioning from the gentle romance of the ceremony to the epic vibes of the reception dance floor.
Scroll on see the stunning style unfold.
The meeting.
We met playing mixed AFL 9’s touch football at Fawkner Park in early 2014; however, it wasn’t until a year later that we started seeing each other.
The ‘one’.
We moved in together after dating for five months, and our relationship was so easy and fun that we just knew it was forever.
The proposal.
October 22, 2021 – It was the day Melbourne opened up from lockdown, so I had made plans with girlfriends on that Friday afternoon to go out for drinks. Our six-year anniversary was four days later, so I left the planning to Nick to organise something for us to do. 6pm came around, and I kept receiving calls and messages from an anxious Nick, who said he had dinner booked.
I came home to our dog, suited up in a bow tie, ready in the car, and Nick with a cooler bag of drinks. He said we were going to the Brighton Beach boxes for a drink before dinner. We got down there at sunset, and about 15 minutes later, Nick set up his phone to get a photo of the two of us and Hudson (the dog). Then, I turned around, and he had dropped down on one knee.
Planning process.
Having worked in events, I had a pretty clear idea of what our wedding would be like and what I did and didn’t want. I knew exactly what I wanted the room to look like in terms of colour scheme – we opted for a classic look with black, grey and white; however, we added a bit of colour with the florals.
In regards to the venue, we both decided we wanted a city wedding, and Prince was the first venue we looked at. As soon as we saw it, we knew it was the one, as it had everything we wanted. We wanted a venue where that could host both the ceremony and reception and a bonus was that we could also get ready there – this just made the day seamless. Having a city wedding also made this easier for our friends and family with young kids.
Once the venue was booked, I pretty much went straight into designing our stationery and booking the rest of our suppliers. I think I had everything booked eight months out from the wedding, so there was nothing to stress about as we got closer to the big day!
Style inspiration.
I always knew I wanted an elegant and timeless wedding where less is more, and our venue choice really lent itself to this. Our table centrepieces were classic white roses mixed with hues of blush and green and candles – simple yet elegant. I also opted to hire black chairs as I loved the contrast of the black against the white tablecloths in the venue.
We didn’t go with any trends as we wanted to be able to look back at our wedding in 10-20 years’ time and for it to still feel modern.
I had a photo album saved on my phone called ‘Wedding,’ which I think I started a year after Nick and I first started dating.
I would save screenshots of photos from Instagram, Pinterest and real weddings of rings, dresses, flowers, stationery, etc. (basically anything wedding-related) to refer back to once I had the chance to plan my own wedding.
Once the planning started, it was mainly real weddings for inspiration and then looking at suppliers I had worked with in the past or had been referred to!
The ceremony.
We were blessed by the weather gods with a sunny 23-degree day, which was perfect for our venue. We had our ceremony on the deck at Prince overlooking Port Phillip Bay.
Our celebrant Shura told our story perfectly, with so much love and laughter – we couldn’t wipe the smiles off our faces the whole time. My favourite part of the ceremony is looking back at the photos and video and seeing Nick’s reaction to our beautiful daughter Lily coming down the aisle with my sister.
The look.
I only had one dress for both the ceremony and reception. I was 20 weeks pregnant when I went wedding dress shopping, and I knew exactly what I wanted. The dress I chose from Kyha was timeless and elegant and was something I didn’t need to fit into but would fit me four and a half months after having a baby.
Nick and the Groomsmen got their suits custom-made by Angela, who is based in Richmond. The boys had a classic tuxedo, while Nick had a black velvet jacket. Nick had an outfit change into a red velvet jacket for our first dance, which tied into the song of The Greatest Show.
Favourite moments.
It’s hard to pick a favourite moment as we absolutely loved the whole day! But if we had to pick one, it would be seeing each other for the first time and me walking down the aisle. I remember being so nervous, but as soon as I got out there, my nerves disappeared, and the reality set in that this was our wedding, and everyone was here for us – it truly was incredible.
Meaning of marriage.
Although our lives won’t change day-to-day, marriage to us means that we will always have the commitment and support of each other and continue to grow together.
Wedding soundtrack.
Aisle: Kiss Me by Sixpence None the Richer (acoustic)
Signing: Dreams by Fleetwood Mac(acoustic)
Recessional: We Found Love by Rihanna ft. Calvin Harris
Reception entry: Higher Love by Kygo & Whitney Houston
First dance: The Greatest Show by Hugh Jackman
Funny stories or near disasters.
No funny stories, but in true Nick fashion, he left his vows to the day of the wedding. He sent them to our celebrant Shura that morning, who told him they were too long, so Nick had to edit them and make a quick dash to Officeworks to print them before getting ready with the boys.
Planning surprises.
Not so much planning; however, neither Nick or I are dancers and learning the first dance was probably the most challenging thing in the lead-up to the wedding!!
Words of wisdom.
Everyone told me to enjoy every minute as the day goes fast, and they were right. We had a few minutes to ourselves after we took our sunset photos to really take in the moment – the whole day just felt so surreal.
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AIMEE & NIC’S VENDORS
Ceremony & reception venue: Prince Deck – St Kilda
Celebrant: Shura Taft – Shu Marries You. Shura is an old friend of Nicks, so as soon as Nick proposed, we knew we wanted Shura as our celebrant. Shura’s creativity in being able to weave our responses from our initial questions to tell our story was memorable – the humour and lighthearted nature of our ceremony were exactly what we were after. We couldn’t wipe the smiles off our faces.
Photography: Tess Follett. Tess was the first vendor we booked. We knew we wanted her to photograph our wedding after we saw how amazing she was at Nick’s brother’s wedding. Tess has a way of making you feel calm and comfortable in front of the camera, and I’m still amazed at how she managed to get the most perfect photos.
Videography: Single Soul
Florist & stylist: Wild in Love. Sarah did our florals and table styling on the day. I came across Sarah after scrolling through photos of weddings on Instagram and checking the tags for the florist. I knew exactly what I wanted our flowers to look like, so as soon as I found a photo with similar flowers and colour palette, I knew we had to use Sarah. Sarah was so easy to work with, and communication with her was a breeze. She was so accommodating, and she made sure she was there on the day to pin the buttonholes on the boys.
Hair & make-up: Tonic Agency. Shannon did my bridesmaids’ hair and did the most incredible job. Andrea did my hair and make-up, plus make-up on all the girls, and I could not have been happier. Both Shannon and Andrea were so professional and are absolute superstars.
The dress: Chosen by Kyha.
Veil: Amélie George Bridal. I borrowed my veil from one of my bridesmaids, Ali.
Shoes: Gucci Marmont Metallic Gold heels.
Rings: Unique Diamonds
Bridesmaid’s dresses: Bec + Bridge
Suits: Custom-made suits by Angela Nicolades
Bow ties: MJ Bale
Catering & Bar: Prince Deck – St Kilda
Cake: Cheese Tower – Theos Deli at South Melbourne Market.
Stationery / Signage: I designed all of our stationery and got this printed myself.
Entertainment: Hey Jack. We had an acoustic duo for our ceremony, then a DJ and Saxophone at our reception. Hey Jack was the perfect choice for entertainment as we could book all three through them. Their artists were incredible and professional – very easy to work with.
Décor: Candles
Hire: Arbour – Weddings of Distinction, black Bentwood chairs – Complete Function Hire, wishing well – State of Elliot, festoon lights – Eventcraft.
Honeymoon: We spent a week soaking up the sunshine at Seahaven Resort in Noosa.
