Nooshies 1st birthday cake for our day at the Zoo

So anyone would think that i really really love making and decorating cakes, and i guess that i have enjoyed the experience.  but i have only done it mainly because i don't like to do things by halves.  so when i decided that we were going to have a day at the zoo to celebrate nooshies actual 1st birthday...i knew that i was going to have to do a zoo cake.  I jumped on google and found a giraffe in the shape of a 1...perfect, so here is my attempt at this cake!

i'm a little on the lazy side when it comes to actually making the cake.  don't get my wrong, i know how to make a cake from scratch, but i absolutely love the betty crocker cake mixes and it's just a tad easier.  i think because you use oil in this mix, it keeps the cake extra moist so you know that it won't be all dry the next day when your all ready to eat it. 

i used 2 packs of the cake mix and baked 2 cakes in a rectangle tin, so i could make the cake nice and high.  
once the cakes were cooled and the tops cut off to create a nice even flat top, i used a thin layer of chocolate icing (the frosting from the packet) and some raspberry jam to glue the cakes together. I used raspberry jam simply because its a favourite of mine and personally think it goes beautifully together with chocolate!
i was prepared and the day before the cake making took place and i measured and cut out a paper stencil in the shape of a 1.  i have found that the cake really needs to be fully cooled when cutting out shapes, it is firmer and holds together much better.
using the frosting i covered the whole cake with icing and then again with the raspberry jam, this acts as a glue so the fondant i'm going use sticks nicely to the cake.  this was the first time i used jam over the icing and i loved it! the jam acted as a fantastic filler, and made the cake finish look extra smooth!

next i got needing with the fondant. I added some yellow food dye to make a creamy colour. after needing needing needing, i then rolled it out on the the bench covered in icing sugar so it didn't stick, then popped it over the cake. 

i dyed the left over fondant dark brown, rolled it and cut out some nice giraffe splotches to stick all over the cake. added a liquorice eye, fashioned some ears out of the fondant and secured them into place with some tooth picks.  i also added a little maine out of the brown fondant. and wella...i had myself a number one giraffe!

and it was delish!