Help! - easy cake ideas for 3rd birthday needed

[QueenOfLists]

I really really want to do a nice cake for dd's 3rd birthday but I have never decorated a cake in my life. I've googled for Dora-themed ones (her favourite show at the moment) but they either look very complicated or they look nothing like Dora . I have no other ideas at all.

Any suggestions for something (anything) simple but effective?

My DD was mad on Finding Nemo when 3, so I made blue butter icing and stuck a load of her Nemo toys on top.

have youthought about getting an edible icing plaque from ebay?
here

or candle like this

then all you need do is bake cake, cover with either rolled icing or buttercream, put on your decoration, then get either ready made flowers, or make some yourself with cutters:
like these ones here which you use with ready to roll icing that you can get in any supermaket! Or cut out simple flower shapes and heart shapes or polka dots with cookie cutters to decorate rest of the cake.

Another idea is to buy some simple dora figures to put on the cake, then dd gets to keep those to play with after.

What about just making a backpack cake?

Have a look on my profile at my ladybird cake. It was really easy, but very effective. Ignore the cat one - it was hell to make

Oops - good idea, that would just be lots of purple icing, which I'm sure even I could manage. Plus she's got a backpack so I could trace the eyes from that.

Geraldine - I think I'd feel a bit of a cheat if I got the plaque - I do like the little cutters though, might get some of those.

Littlefish - love the ladybird cake - how did you do that?