Preheat Oven and Grease Cake Pans - Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Farenheit. Lightly grease all three of the pans.
Together The Dry Ingredients - Using a large bowl, sift together the flour, sugar, baking soda, salt, and cocoa powder. Set the bowl aside.
Mix the Wet Ingredients - In a medium bowl, whisk together the vegetable oil, buttermilk, eggs, food coloring, white distilled vinegar, and vanilla.
Mix Together with the Wet and Dry Ingredients - Using your electric mixer, mix the wet and dry ingredients together. Beat the mixture until just smooth.
Bake the Red Velvet Cakes - Divide the batter evenly among your three cake pans. Bake for around 30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean. Let the cakes cool in the pans for a few minutes before carefully turning them onto a wire rack.
Make the Frosting - While the cakes are cooling, mix the cream cheese, confectioners’ sugar, and butter at low speed with a mixer using a paddle attachment. Once incorporated, mix the frosting at high speed for around five minutes. Reduce the speed to low, then add in the vanilla extract.
Prepare the Cakes - Using a serrated knife, trim the top of the cakes off to make them level. Set the trimmings aside in a bowl and crumble them into fine pieces, using your hands.
Decorate Your Cake - Place the first layer of cake down and use an offset spatula to frost the top. Then, add your next cake layer and frost the top. Next, add the final cake layer, frosting the sides and the top.
Take your red velvet crumbs and gently stick them to the side of your cake using your hands. Add the crumbs until the sides are completely covered.