A young woman from Stevenage who took up cake design to help control her anxiety has continued to build on her success,– ending the year by scooping three gold medals at her latest competition.

Laura Loukaides suffered with anxiety most of her life and at her worst she was unable to leave the house, but it was cake making that helped her begin to work through it.

The 22-year-old said: “As I was able to focus on making a cake, I noticed that I started to feel better much quicker and soon enough I was going out again and felt confident to continue with my work.””

Laura was inspired by American TV shows Ace of Cakes and Cake Boss to attempt decorating complex and challenging creations.

After getting lots of positive feedback from family and friends, Laura began entering competitions and before the end of 2015 fought off a record number of entries – more than 1,000 cakes – at Cake International in Birmingham to win three gold medals for her pirate, beaded satchel and bulldog pirate barrel cake designs.

“I was so happy to have been awarded three gold medals – I was really nervous to enter so many cakes for one competition,” she said.

“There were so many incredible cakes on display, it was a great atmosphere for any cake maker.

“The experience has taught me that just because you’re shy or suffer from any kind of anxiety, it doesn’t mean that you can’t achieve big things.”

Laura’s work can take anywhere from six to 15 hours for smaller cakes to more than 100 hours for larger pieces – it all depends on the design, scale and attention to detail.

For more information visit lauraloukaidescakes.co.uk.