this sculpture was custom designed for a party and incorporated the initials of the girls that were the “stars of the party.”
updated 6/29/23 when added to iss
the ice sculpture design process
For this entry, I’m going to go over some of the thinking behind the ice sculpture design process. Above, you see the finished design. I’ll take you through my process of designing a sculpture that I ended up carving for a recent event. It certainly wasn’t an ice sculpting masterpiece, but it ended up as a nice sculpture for the event
To start with, the client wanted an ice sculpture with stars and the first name initials of the two girls that the party was being thrown for: M and K. Working with those elements in my design program, I came up with the design below.
fitting the ice to the design
Once I had the design, I began the process of fitting the ice to the design (not the other way around.) I put a block-sized rectangle over the design to see how I could put this sculpture together, as shown below. I generally try to cover as much of the sculpture as possible with the rectangle in this step, even if I have to turn it at an angle.
making adjustments
It looked like I could get most of the sculpture out of a 40×20 inch slab attached to a base. Aside from that, I would have to add a couple of pieces, but it looked like those pieces could come out of the same main slab. There were a couple of spots that didn’t quite work, but those were minor adjustments. These minor adjustments are indicated in red. I added an additional support to the “K” star and I moved around two stars below the top star. I made the top star a little larger because I could and because, as one of the most exposed parts of the sculpture, it would melt the fastest.
Sometimes the hardest part is getting the most out of your ice. These two add-on pieces on the main stars didn’t want to fit easily into the leftover ice. But they did fit, so the sculpture requires only a half-slab and a base to complete, as shown below. (When making a template for a sculpture that’s a tight fit, give yourself a little extra space and make the template a little small.)
sculpting the sculpture
Once the design is all planned out and you’ve made a template, you’ve finished the ice sculpture design process. Now it’s time to start sculpting!
For a sculpture like this, when you’re welding pieces on, leave a little extra ice around the weld. You can cut this ice off after it’s frozen and it will help the sculpture look more like it’s from one big piece of ice instead of several smaller pieces. By the way, the two added pieces of ice should be welded on early as possible, especially if you’re carving outside the freezer, so that the welding surfaces aren’t damaged.
Also, take special care in the case of the “K” star, as the weld crosses a letter. You need this weld to be as clean as possible. Normally I would avoid this situation, but I felt like it would work okay this time. Check out the entry on welding ice with aluminum plate for details on how to make strong, low-visibility welds.
When you’re finished with the outside silhouette of the sculpture, you have to work on the interior shapes of the stars. Cut all the way through the ice only in spots where you’re comfortable. Otherwise, just cut part way and chisel out pockets between the stars. Make sure that the cuts around the stars themselves are as sharp as possible.
This sculpture design employs a method of ice sculpture design that I call the Core Design concept. Basically, smaller pieces are attached to a larger center piece that is the structural foundation of the sculpture. I’ll expand on this method in future articles.
another way to sculpt this design
Finally, I’ve included a diagram which is a starting point for another way to put this sculpture together. This way is less efficient and takes a bit more ice, but some might be more comfortable with this method. This straightforward stacking version has the added benefit of avoiding a weld through the letters, which is a usually a good choice. You might need to make adjustments to the design however, since you’re taking a completely different approach.
I didn’t get a picture of my stars of the party ice sculpture, but the client was happy. Don’t wait for a party for clients with the initials “M” and “K” (That could take a while 😜 ) This design could be carved with or without initials or even with short names instead.
for more info
If you have any questions about my stars of the party ice sculpture design or about the ice sculpture design process, email me or comment below. (It might not let you though.) If you would like to use this ice sculpture design or any other design on this site, please check the design usage guidelines. The design collection page lists designs on the site.
You might also find photos and info from this entry on the ice sculpting secrets Instagram account and you can comment there as well as below. Thanks!
