Up the aww factor at your next gathering with the cutest llama cake, complete with a heart-shaped face, full rustic fluff and a laurel of colorful pom-poms.

Food:

 ● 4 x 6-inch cake rounds, cooled (choose any recipe you like)
 ● Vanilla Buttercream frosting (use the large batch recipe included or 4 store-bought cans)
  ○ 6 cups (12 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
  ○ 2 pounds (1 bag) confectioners' sugar
  ○ 2 tablespoons heavy cream
  ○ 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
  ○ 1/2 teaspoon table salt
 ● Food coloring: Brown, Teal, Pink, Orange, Black
 ● Sprinkles

Tools:

 ● Plastic piping bags (and rubber bands to close them)
 ● Grass decorating tip
 ● Offset spatula
 ● Serrated knife
 ● Parchment paper
 ● Toothpicks
 ● Fork

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line four 6-inch cake pans with parchment paper and coat with cooking spray. Prepare your choice of cake mix as directed; divide the batter between the pans and bake 25 to 30 minutes. Allow the cakes to completely cool before you begin decorating.

While the cakes are baking, make one large batch of buttercream frosting. Beat the butter for a few minutes on medium speed, preferably using a stand mixer with the paddle attachment. On slow speed, gradually add the confectioners' sugar 1 to 2 cups at a time, allowing each batch of sugar to incorporate with the butter before adding the next. Increase the speed to medium and add the vanilla, cream and salt. Beat for an additional 3 minutes.

Fill two large piping bags with the vanilla buttercream. Use a rubber band to close each bag.

Divide and color the leftover frosting. You will need roughly:

 ● 1/4 cup of black frosting
 ● 1/4 cup each of teal, pink, and orange frosting (or any color combination you prefer)
 ● 4+ cups (all remaining frosting) of light brown frosting

For each color of frosting (aside from the black), insert a grass piping tip into a plastic decorating bag and fill the bag with the frosting. For the black frosting, cut off the tip of a plastic piping bag before filling. Use a rubber band to close each bag.

Working on a cake plate or board, stack the cake rounds, adding a layer of frosting and sprinkles in between each cake layer. Use a serrated knife to level each cake layer; set all cake scraps aside in a bowl.

Once layers have been assembled, place the cake in the refrigerator for 15 minutes to set.

Add 1 small spoonful of frosting into the bowl of cake scraps. Break down the mixture with your hands until the mixture is pliable and able to be molded without crumbling.

Mold the mixture into two cylindrical shapes for ears, and place on a cookie sheet or cutting board lined with parchment paper. Pipe a round nose shape onto the parchment with the white frosting. Freeze the ears and nose for 15 minutes until firm.

Use a serrated knife to round the top and bottom edges of the cake to create the shape of the llama head.

Frost the exterior of the cake with white frosting.

Smooth with a spatula or other flat edge frosting tool.

With the light brown-filled piping bag with grass piping tip, pipe the "fur" onto the cake.

Keep a heart-shaped area in the center blank for the face.

Use a fork to add additional texture to the fur.

Insert two toothpicks into the top of the cake. Gently secure the molded ears onto each toothpick.

Pipe the frosting fur onto the ears.

While the nose is still cold and firm to the touch, use your finger to smooth any uneven areas. Insert one end of the toothpick into the cake towards the bottom of the blank face area, then secure the frozen nose onto the toothpick and cake. If necessary, you can add additional frosting to the backside of the nose to help keep it secure on the cake.

To finish off the cake pipe on the eyes, as well as the nose and mouth details with black frosting.

Adorn the llama with colorful pom-poms using the colored frosting and grass piping tips.