Dedicated, driven, devoted. These words barely begin to touch the depth of Brigitte Labby’s talent and the magic in her baking.
Brigitte of Azilda started Driving Mrs. Labby back in 2019, specializing in cupcakes and flower bouquet-designed cupcakes displayed in wicker baskets.
These designs are popular for baby showers, mother’s day and birthdays.
Labby has spent her whole life baking, but it wasn’t until she dropped leftover cupcakes at her daughter’s workplace did the pastime turn into something more.
“I made too many cupcakes and wanted to share,” she said. “My daughter called and said her boss tried one and suggested I sell them as it was the best cupcake he ever tasted. It honestly seemed ridiculous because I felt anyone could make cupcakes.”
Her first contract was for a housewarming party after an advertisement was posted online.
That first customer returned again recently for another life event, Labby said.
Now, she has customers spanning Alberta to Nova Scotia. Locally, Labby likes to deliver orders to ensure they are safe during transport, especially for weddings. There is a nominal charge associated with delivery.
The cupcake crafter spent much of her adult life working for charitable and not-for-profit organizations, including the ALS Society and the Lifesaving Society. She is all about giving back to the community.
Labby recently entered a cake in Art of Dessert, the Sudbury Food Bank’s fall fundraiser of the year, creating a whimsical diner-style burger cake, accompanied by french fries in the form of sugar cookies and strawberry jam meant to look like a ketchup in a soufflé cup complete with a takeout container.
Labby is also representing Cafe Heritage in Azilda and Chelmsford by stirring up something special this holiday season for Le Réveillon 2025 with Bakers for the Arts. This charitable initiative raises funds for local arts and multicultural programming with bakers donating handcrafted gifts of holiday baking.
Come the new year, Brigitte will be participating in the annual Taste of Sudbury Food and Drink Festival in support of the Inner City Home.
But back to the food. There are many styles of icing when it comes to cupcakes. Labby specializes in American buttercream icing, which is basically the perfect moist consistency of butter and sugar.
She also dabbles in chocolate, vanilla and lemon cakes, and seasonal strawberry shortcakes, too.
The Azilda creator also makes specialty cupcakes using Rolos and Oreos, and often sells special products like her blackforest cupcakes at La Jeune Café in Azilda.
When she’s not making cakes and cupcakes, she paints birch trees with acrylics on canvas.
“I’m a Pisces so I guess I have these creative skills by nature whether it be designing a canvas or a cupcake,” she said.
She said customer satisfaction is what drives her.
“One family picks up two orders per month. Another couple went out of town for an event and picked up my cupcakes and reported afterwards that they ate them all the way to Ottawa or Toronto,” Labby said. “I like hearing this feedback.”
Moving forward into 2026, Brigitte plans to bring a farmstand to her street in Azilda this spring or summer.
It will include protein balls, zucchini bread and banana bread, and other family specialities in addition to cupcakes.
To learn more about Driving Mrs. Labby, visit her pages on Facebook and Instagram.
Anastasia Rioux is a writer in Greater Sudbury. Let’s Eat! is made possible by our Community Leaders Program.