Elephants, Crocs, Giraffes Oh My!

It's been over a month since I did this cake but again, I've been meaning to share it for too long.

I received an order for a cake to coordinate with a Serena & Lily bedding swatch.  The mom-to-be was not finding out the gender and chose the Dylan Bedding Collection for the nursery.  At first, I was a bit intimidated by the design but then realized the potential for a really cute cake!  

Dylan bedding from Serena & Lily

I love the geometric pattern.  I'm definitely not a stylist, but the pairing of the curved lines of the animals with the sharp lines of the pattern, it just looked beautiful.  

I wanted to recreate the whimsical feel of the tan-ish lines that surround the animals by painting edible paint onto fondant.  It wasn't perfect and that's what I loved about it.  

I found the vintage animal cookie cutters through a lady on Etsy.  They are extremely old and definitely one of a kind, which makes them very cool.  They even came in their original tin.  Not sure what I would have done if I hadn't found them... but good thing I didn't have to worry about that.

I also wanted to incorporate the natural fibers they used on the bedding bumper ties.  I found a burlap-looking ribbon made out of partial silk.  I functioned more like ribbon than burlap which is what I wanted while maintaining that natural fiber look.  I'm pretty sure I got several spools of that good stuff. 

She also ordered some cookies for the favors.  I used the vintage animal cutters again to make giraffes and elephants.  

Looking back, I'm not crazy about the ribbon choice for the cake board.  It's conflicting with the cake. But oh well.  I loved everything else about it!

Happy Baby Shower Erin!  I can't wait to hear if it's a BOY or GIRL!!!