Nicole and Dean

Such a stylish, urban Melbourne wedding for you this fine Tuesday – beautiful Melbourne venues, elegant styling and a very in love couple – doesn’t get much better really!

Nicole and Dean met while studying. Nicole recalls, “We met whilst both at uni ten years ago (Dean worked at the local pub at the time). We had Johnny Wonderpants who were the house band at the time for the wedding as a reminder of how it all started! We have been living in London for the past 6 years.”

Photographs today are by Brent Lukey who always takes such a fun approach to his photography – from the important moments to making the most of the hilarious ones!

Nicole wore heels from Christian Louboutin. Her bridesmaids wore grey strapless gowns from J Crew and Kristina at Viva Flora styled the bouquets of peonies.

Nicole wore the ‘Diana’ gown by Vera Wang, She loved it to pieces –  “Vera really knows what she’s doing!”

Nicole and Dean were married at Catholic Parish Church of St Peter and Paul. Nicole says, “We organised the whole wedding from London which was pretty tough because you can’t go and see suppliers (or go with fussy bridesmaids to pick dresses which may have been a good thing!). Things like the order of ceremonies I did myself, I would highly recommend looking at Martha Stewart Weddings – she has some great templates.”

Nicole walked down the aisle to Canon in D played by the Tonic String Quartet. One of Nicole’s favourite memories is her walk down the aisle. “Seeing my friends and family as I was coming down the aisle – some of whom came from overseas. Then to look up and see Dean  – he looked so happy and nervous when I was coming down the aisle. He is usually unshakable under pressure.”

Nicole remarks “Father Bob Maguire got the day off to a great start and set the tone by delivering a funny and engaging service.”

Nicole and Dean held their reception at The Prince Deck at Circa. Nicole remarks “The Prince was the perfect venue, with a roof garden, inside dining and pool with floated lilies, it felt like we were finally home.”


A family friend made a three tier wedding cake. Nicole donned a black sash to glam her gown up for the reception.

The couple hired Johnny Wonderpants to keep their guests on the dance floor at the reception. For their first dance, Nicole recalls “The band played ‘Blowers Daughter’ by Damien Rice, we had no practice so it was pretty bad but good fun.”

The speeches were another remarkable memory for the bride, who says, “I loved My dad’s ‘father of the bride’ speech –it  rocked the crowd and left them chanting more.  I was surprised by the vibe of the wedding, everyone really let their hair down and had a great time. I also loved surprising dad with Neil Young’s ‘Heart of Gold’ for a father daughter dance.”


The guests had a ball, with two memorable stories. “As soon as I heard that two guests were in the pool (fully dressed with the carefully floated flowers), my first question was “Are they my people or Deans!?” We also had a bleeding bridesmaid  – after some amazing commitment to the bouquet, she cut her foot and finished the night in the hospital ER.

Congratulations Nicole and Dean! Thank you for sharing your wedding day with us on Polka Dot Bride! Thank you also to Brent Lukey for sharing today’s wedding photographs with us!