For really good success in floating one liquid on another firstly you have to consider the specific gravity of the two liquids. Floating say, a thicker liqueur like Grand Marnier on something watery like apple juice will never work well. That being said, the way to build a layered beverage is to pour the top layer gently over a spoon that is just in contact with the lower layer, or, if your glass is too narrow for that you can use a marashino cherry (with the stem), have the cherry half in half out of the lower layer and gently pour the next layer over the cherry.

Happy mixology.
Source(s):
Personal experience, cross training in the hospitality industry.

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Here's a great video to show you how:

http://www.hulu.com/watch/30400/simply-delicioso-layered-drinks

And here's a chart that gives you the relative weights in specific gravity of various commonly-used drink ingredients. The key is to put the heaviest ones on bottom.

http://www.drinkstreet.com/article.cgi?article=17

The link above only lists liquors. But apple juice typically has a specific gravity of around 1.05. Orange juice has a specific gravity of about 1.04-1.05. Cranberry juice has a specific gravity of about 1.03.
Source(s):
http://www.usjuice.com/brix.html The information in this chart for fruit juices is listed in Brix units. Use the link below to convert to specific gravity for comparison to the chart of specific gravities of liquors.

http://www.brewheads.com/brixsg.php

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