Lara Stuckey’s passion for baking started at the tender age of five with an Easy-Bake Oven. She grew up and earned degrees in psychology and fine arts—but fed her love of baking by working part-time at CakeLove.

Nine years ago, thanks to a suggestion from a friend, Stuckey decided to combine her passions for art and baking into a business. She opened Fluffy Thoughts Cakes in her licensed kitchen in McLean. So where does the psychology fit in? “Baking is therapeutic,” Stuckey says. “Seeing customers’ faces once they see their cake is very rewarding. It’s worth every single second that I invest in the cake.”

Lucky (and hungry) brides can choose from a wide variety of flavors. Some favorites include Elvis’s Dream (banana cake with alternating layers of peanut butter and chocolate buttercream), Oh Oh Good (chocolate or red-velvet cake with Oreos and cream covered in buttercream frosting), and Pucker Up (yellow cake with lemon curd and coconut buttercream covered in buttercream frosting).

Stuckey is coming to The Washingtonian on Thursday. And while we wish it were for a cake tasting, it’s for something even better—a live chat. Submit your cake questions now, and Stuckey will answer them from 11 to noon on Thursday.

When the clock hit 11:59 AM yesterday, Rob Goyena of Catering by Uptown was still typing. He had given thorough answers to a ton of questions in the live Bridal Party chat, but there were still a few more to go. We told Goyena he could wrap it up because the chat was due to finish at noon. But he said he came for the chat, and he’d finish the questions no matter how long it took. After an hour and 45 minutes, we loved his enthusiasm—and just hoped The Washingtonian didn’t give him carpal-tunnel syndrome.

Catering by Uptown has been a family-owned business for more than 30 years and has more than 10,000 weddings under its belt. The company offers on-premise wedding catering services at its two company-owned facilities—the Villa and Celebrations at the Bay—as well as off-premise catering at more than 100 locations in the area. But the services don’t stop with cuisine, Goyena says. Catering by Uptown offers wedding coordination, which includes everything from vendor referrals to decor and rehearsals.

From serving noncake desserts to recreating family recipes, our readers had questions—lots of questions. And Goyena had helpful, thoughtful answers for every last one of them. If you missed yesterday’s chat, read the transcript here.

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When Rob Goyena was growing up, he’d visit his parents while they ran the family business, Catering by Uptown. “The chefs would give me rocky-road brownies—I was hooked!” says Goyena, who’s now vice president of the company. “At age 12, I started working on entering the food orders into the computer, and then I worked in the kitchen and as a waiter, and I eventually started consulting on, planning, and running events.”

Catering by Uptown has been a family-owned business for more than three decades. In that time, it has served six presidents, members of Congress, a variety of embassies, and the Supreme Court, just to name a few. And weddings? Oh, yes—it knows weddings, too. In 30 years, it’s catered more than 10,000 of them.

The company offers on-premise wedding catering services at its two company-owned facilities—the Villa and Celebrations at the Bay—as well as off-premise catering at more than 100 locations in the area. But the services don’t stop with cuisine, Goyena says. Catering by Uptown offers wedding coordination, which includes everything from vendor referrals to decor and rehearsals.

When it comes to picking a wedding gown, it can seem like a maze of possibilities. White versus ivory, beaded versus lace, straps versus strapless. For anyone who’s feeling overwhelmed with options, we’ve got expert help.

Carine Halabi began her career in fashion more than ten years ago when she moved to New York City to join the design team at Aeffe, the parent company of Moschino, John Paul Gaultier, and Alberta Ferretti. She later returned home to Washington, where she specialized in bridal fashion at Vera Wang, Priscilla of Boston, and Saks Fifth Avenue in Tysons Galleria.

In November 2006, Carine’s Bridal Atelier (1726 Wisconsin Ave., NW; 202-965-4696) opened its doors in Georgetown, offering wedding-gown expertise and tailored bridal fashion for every body type, personality, and style. Carine’s Bridal Atelier was the fashion sponsor of Sunday’s Washingtonian Bride & Groom: Unveiled wedding showcase, where Halabi presented mother-of-the-bride eveningwear and bridal gowns by Monique Lhuillier.

Carine Halabi began her career in fashion more than ten years ago when she moved to New York City to join the design team at Aeffe, the parent company of Moschino, John Paul Gaultier, and Alberta Ferretti. She later returned home to Washington, where she specialized in bridal fashion at Vera Wang, Priscilla of Boston, and Saks Fifth Avenue in Tysons Galleria. While at the salons, she continued to work with New York designers twice a year for bridal-fashion week.

Halabi developed a knack for hand-picking dresses off the New York runway that would be instant bestsellers in the Washington bridal market and decided it was time to open a store of her own. In November 2006, Carine’s Bridal Atelier (1726 Wisconsin Ave., NW; 202-965-4696) opened its doors in Georgetown, offering wedding-gown expertise and tailored bridal fashion for every body type, personality, and style. The shop’s long list of designers includes Angel Sanchez, Carolina Herrera, Christian Lacroix, Karl Lagerfeld, Melissa Sweet, and Monique Lhuillier.

It’s no secret that the holidays are the most popular time of year to propose. With January just under way, we knew that our first chat of the year had to be with a planner who could answer any newly engaged couple’s questions, from save-the-dates right on through the honeymoon.

Enter Jamie Sears. She’s been a party-planning addict since she was a little girl—growing up, she used to help her parents pick out invitations and decide the menus for their parties. After graduating from college with a degree in event management, she realized she could turn her passion into a career. Helping to plan her best friend’s wedding and then planning her own inspired Sears to pursue her dream, which she did by forming Simply Chic Events in 2006. Since then, she’s planned more than 40 weddings in Washington and beyond—everywhere from the Hay-Adams and Meridian House to Bermuda and Napa Valley. “Being a wedding planner is about much more than timelines and spreadsheets,” says Sears, whose firm offers services from “month of” to full wedding planning. “It’s about being a friend,” she says.

When Jamie Sears was a little girl and her parents threw parties, she made sure to be a part of every stage of the planning from picking out the invitations to deciding the menu. But it wasn’t until after she graduated from college with a degree in event management that she realized she could turn her passion into a career.

Helping to plan her best friend’s wedding and then planning her own wedding inspired Sears to pursue her dream, which she did by forming Simply Chic Events in 2006. Since then, she’s planned more than 40 weddings in Washington and beyond—everywhere from the Hay-Adams and Meridian House to Bermuda and Napa Valley. “Being a wedding planner is about much more than timelines and spreadsheets—it’s about being a friend,” says Sears, whose firm offers services from “month of” to full wedding planning. “I love getting to know each couple and helping them create a day that’s truly unique and reflective of them as a couple. My goal is simple: to allow my clients to enjoy being engaged and ultimately be guests at their own wedding.”