{"id":193710,"date":"2014-10-02T14:00:23","date_gmt":"2014-10-02T04:00:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/content.easyweddings.com\/au\/real-weddings\/chloe-lees-breathtaking-new-zealand-elopement\/"},"modified":"2022-03-17T09:11:30","modified_gmt":"2022-03-16T22:11:30","slug":"chloe-lees-breathtaking-new-zealand-elopement","status":"publish","type":"uk-real-wedding","link":"https:\/\/www.easyweddings.co.uk\/real-weddings\/uk\/real-weddings\/chloe-lees-breathtaking-new-zealand-elopement\/","title":{"rendered":"Chloe & Lee’s breathtaking New Zealand elopement"},"content":{"rendered":"

Even without a bridal party, guests, reception or theme, I really struggled to cut these gorgeous elopement pictures of Chloe Hislop and Lee Donald down to a neat 40.<\/span><\/p>\n

The NSW couple\u2019s special day was celebrated in Wanaka, New Zealand, on August 20, 2014, with just four loved ones – and their breathtaking photos are matched by their beautiful story. Here it is.<\/p>\n

They grew up as kids on their families\u2019 annual camping trips until one year things turned up a notch.<\/p>\n

Ten years later they were still in love, had two gorgeous children, renovated houses, finished uni degrees and changed careers \u2013 where was the time to get married?<\/p>\n

Then, in 2013, Lee\u2019s dad suffered a devastating stroke, only adding to the improbability that these two would ever walk down the aisle. But as 27-year-old Chloe says, the best decisions we make in life are often spontaneous.<\/p>\n

\u201cOur role as partners, parents, and now carers, made us realise the importance of marriage and its binding nature,\u201d reflects Chloe. \u201cAware of the limitations of our ability to have a traditional \u2018wedding\u2019, we spoke about eloping.\u201d<\/p>\n

So when plans for a family snow trip turned into an overseas one – to New Zealand – the pair decided it was time.<\/p>\n

\u201cJust like that, two months before our scheduled departure, we organised our dream destination wedding \u2013 in the middle of winter \u2013 4500 feet above sea level!\u201d says Chloe.<\/p>\n

The pair exchanged their long-awaited vows in the presence of their son and daughter and Chloe\u2019s parents. They then boarded a helicopter for some spectacular scenery shots atop Coromandel Peak, taking a framed photo of Lee\u2019s folks with them. \u201cWe felt they were with us for our special day,\u201d says Chloe, with Lee, 33.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have an appreciation for life now which differs from before\u2026words cannot describe the significance of this day.\u201d<\/p>\n

The couple\u2019s reception was a cosy dinner for two, a simple pleasure they rarely enjoy. “Blissful,” smiles the bride.<\/p>\n

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Lee’s ring was custom designed by a family friend with Chloe’s and the kids’ fingerprints cad-cut into the inside.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

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“We organised our entire day via email,” says Chloe. “It is amazing to be able to instill so much trust (and money) to a complete stranger and hope they create your perfect day!”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

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\u201cIt was unseasonably perfect,\u201d Chloe recalls. \u201cClear blue skies, a balmy 14 degrees and not a breath of wind.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

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\u201cLife is short, we just want to live it, together as a family, and now \u2013 as husband and wife.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Photos courtesy of Alpine Image Co.<\/a><\/div>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":106976,"parent":0,"template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_lmt_disableupdate":"","_lmt_disable":"","footnotes":""},"uk_real_wedding_category":[],"uk_real_wedding_tag":[],"uk_real_wedding_style":[],"uk_real_wedding_location":[],"uk_real_wedding_setting":[],"uk_real_wedding_colour":[],"uk_real_wedding_competition":[],"class_list":["post-193710","uk-real-wedding","type-uk-real-wedding","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.easyweddings.co.uk\/real-weddings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/uk-real-wedding\/193710","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.easyweddings.co.uk\/real-weddings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/uk-real-wedding"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.easyweddings.co.uk\/real-weddings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/uk-real-wedding"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.easyweddings.co.uk\/real-weddings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.easyweddings.co.uk\/real-weddings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/uk-real-wedding\/193710\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.easyweddings.co.uk\/real-weddings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/106976"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.easyweddings.co.uk\/real-weddings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=193710"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"uk_real_wedding_category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.easyweddings.co.uk\/real-weddings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/uk_real_wedding_category?post=193710"},{"taxonomy":"uk_real_wedding_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.easyweddings.co.uk\/real-weddings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/uk_real_wedding_tag?post=193710"},{"taxonomy":"uk_real_wedding_style","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.easyweddings.co.uk\/real-weddings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/uk_real_wedding_style?post=193710"},{"taxonomy":"uk_real_wedding_location","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.easyweddings.co.uk\/real-weddings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/uk_real_wedding_location?post=193710"},{"taxonomy":"uk_real_wedding_setting","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.easyweddings.co.uk\/real-weddings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/uk_real_wedding_setting?post=193710"},{"taxonomy":"uk_real_wedding_colour","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.easyweddings.co.uk\/real-weddings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/uk_real_wedding_colour?post=193710"},{"taxonomy":"uk_real_wedding_competition","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.easyweddings.co.uk\/real-weddings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/uk_real_wedding_competition?post=193710"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}