Please DO NOT Feed the Gator Cake

My niece's best friend wanted an alligator/swamp themed cake for her son's first birthday, and this is what I created.  I call it my "Please DO NOT Feed the Gator" Cake.  But notice (LOL) that the turtle is trying to cover the "NOT" with a handful of mud.  Mr. Turtle wants the alligator feed so the alligator doesn't resort to eating him.

I made a smash cake for little Clayton too.  The alligator on his cake wasn't as toothy as the gator on the big cake.  I didn't want the poor little boy to be afraid of his cake.

Sorry I forgot to take pictures as I was making the fondant alligators, but I did snap a few pictures of the cake.  Here I am applying the five different shades of blue.

I use acrylic disks to get my top and side perfectly flat and the edges sharp.  I cover the disks with Glad Press and Seal wrap to make it easier to separate the disks from the cake.   Do you think the side of the cake looks like water or the sky?  I think it looks like the sky with a few fluffy white clouds.   I wasn't sure how to make it more water-like so I left it alone and didn't try to fiddle with it.

So sorry about the lack of step-by-step picture, but here is the final product again.

Happy Decorating,

Carol