Inside bottom tier of zebra/polka dot cake

This is a pic my niece took of the inside of the bottom tier of the zebra/polka dot cake after it had been cut. This was my 1st attempt at doing what is called a "surprise inside" zebra stripe effect. The problem w/these "surprise inside" effects is that you never know if they come out like they're supposed to until the cake has actually been cut. I have to say I'm somewhat disappointed. I don't find it looks like zebra stripes at all or anything like the pics I've seen of others on the internet. I also did a "surprise inside" polka dot effect in the top tier. I had my niece take a pic of that as well. Also disappointed b/c the polka dots only showed up in only 1 layer of the top tier. I've done this technique 2x before in my "Cupcake Ninja" cakes. I know from experience w/those that I didn't put enough cake balls in the batter so for this one I made sure I put enough so that the polka dots would show up throughout both layers when it was cut. I don't know, maybe it was the way she cut it that they didn't show up like they were supposed to. Oh well, they say practice makes perfect.