Cake Ideas

I want to try out this cake for a wedding shower. I found it online and I think it is really cute. But I don't want to make it for the first time for a paying customer because that is risky. Something could go terribly wrong. I will have to practice by making a mini version.

However, I am having a trouble with round cakes. I had this problem the first time I made a layered round cake, and also for the ladybug cake. Even though each layer was baked in the same pan, the sides somehow don't line up straight up and down when stacked on top of each other. This makes icing it extremely difficult and impossible to get smooth. My friend Sheri (who is an awesome cake decorator) suggested that the pans I am using might have slightly slanted sides. I think she may be right. I am going to buy a better quality pan and see if that works. Has anyone ever experienced this problem? If you have any tips let me know!