When Mark Charles McKinley proposed to Lamar Cooper, the couple popped Champagne, shared a dance, and looked ahead to their enchanted wedding weekend in France. “I always dreamed about getting married abroad,” Lamar shares. From the moment she got engaged, the bride and her mother searched for the perfect destination venue for their summer ceremony. Ultimately, the couple chose Château de Tourreau in Provence. Lucy Till French Weddings planned the occasion and Oliver Fly captured it all on camera.
“I had a vision of a timeless, elegant but chic look,” the bride says of her wedding dress. She came across an old photo of the Reem Acra Adore dress and, as it turned out, the New York showroom had a sample stored away. Lamar and her mother quickly flew out to try it on. “I knew I had found the one.”
Lamar and Charlie welcomed guests to France with a French market–inspired fête. “The moment I had been waiting for! Finally getting to wear my dress by One/Of by Patricia Voto was a dream! Every detail was stunning, with more than 100 silk flower petals spread throughout the dress and train,” Lamar notes. “It made walking through our Provençal market even more of a thrill.”
Everyone received a basket bag to carry through booths, each detailed with custom “Bonjour Y’all” golf balls, bandanas, hats, and sweatshirts by Shop Koch. Guests were also gifted a glass bottle of olive oil from the Château d’Estoublon for a taste of Provence.
After the market, the wedding party sat surrounded by fairy lights for the rehearsal dinner. “Playful colors created the perfect setting for dinner in this magical courtyard,” Lamar remembers. “Seeing our custom tablecloths come to life was such a cool moment. Charlie and I chose a few things that were important to us and seeing them on each table at the rehearsal dinner felt so special.”
On August 10, 2022, Lamar locked arms with her father and took her final steps as Ms. Cooper, as strings from Lady’s Orchestra played. “I could not have been happier walking down the aisle with my dad,” Lamar recalls. Soon after, Lamar and Charlie exchanged vows amongst family and friends in front of a floral arch by Miss Rose by Perrine. “I was the happiest man alive,” the groom shares. “Being in front of all the people I cared about, it was just amazing. And I got to marry my favorite person in the world.”
The groom wore a custom tux by Knot Standard with the couple’s wedding date embroidered just inside the jacket and “L+C” under the collar. “As my something borrowed, I wore my mother-in-law’s earrings and my sister-in-law’s ring that she wore the day she got married, which felt so special,” the bride shares. Joana Ronquillo created her day-of beauty look.
Following the ceremony, Lamar and Charlie shared a moment alone before rejoining their guests for dinner. Everyone indulged in a colorful lineup of French fare, catered by Helen Traiteur. Lobster salad was served among pear sorbet calvados before a main course of lamb. “Dinner was one of my favorite moments; being in Provence drinking some of the best wines with my husband and our families was magical,” Lamar notes.
At the reception, the newlyweds shared their first dance to Al Green’s “Let’s Stay Together,” while everyone enjoyed specialty cocktails. “Our DJ, Thomas Dusseune, was the life of the party, and we all danced the night away under the stars,” the bride remembers. As the wedding weekend came to a close, Lamar and Charlie bid adieu to their guests and escaped to the serene vineyards of Villa La Coste for their honeymoon.
