I loved making this cake for my mother-in-law. She held a family party at the zoo, and so a zoo themed cake seemed appropriate. The gorilla held a special significance for her, so the topper is her being cuddled by a gorilla. I really liked making the animals, especially the gorilla and the giraffe. The leopard print is hand painted directly onto the fondant, and the giraffe and tiger stripe cakes are fondant patches and stripes stuck onto the cake.

I stacked the cakes into one corner to give me more space for the animals and really liked the effect. It meant that I couldn't continue the ribbon at the bases of the cakes around the back, so I covered the join in the cakes with some leaves.