Frequently Asked Questions
1) How long have you been doing this?
We've been in business as full-time ice sculptors since 1986...18 years.
2) How do I order?
You can order in several different ways. You can email an order to us through the website...you can fax over your order...you can call our office "message" line and leave the details and your phone number or you can call us on our cell phone at 936-443-1122. We are very busy and in the freezers most of the time...so it's hard to catch us in the office. The landlines don't work in the freezers, but we always keep the business cell phone with us. If you get a message on the cell phone, don't worry. It just means that the chainsaws are running and we couldn't hear it. If you leave a message, we'll call you back within minutes. Our message line is (936) 447-1100 and that line also functions as a fax line.
3) How long do they last?
We always say that ice sculptures last for 5-7 hours on a buffet table. They don't melt away in that length of time, but they will lose some of their sharp details. They have very little surface compared to the volume of ice, so they don't melt like you think of ice cubes melting. OUtdoors in the shade, they should last 4-6 hours.
4) Do you deliver? Where?.
Yes...we deliver from Conroe to Galveston and all points in between. the entire Houston Metro area. For large commissions, we have travelled all over the world.xt.
5) Can I get something custom done?
Absolutely!! Most of what we do is custom done. We've done a bride and groom on a jet ski....kissing frogs on a heart and just about everything else you can imagine from dump trucks to glass slippers. It's no more expensive to have something custom sculpted. Just call us and let us know what you'd like and we'll do some drawings for your approval.
6) Can you freeze things in the ice?
Oh SURE!!! We've frozen thousands of bouquets of flowers in ice...and all kinds of other things...diamond rings, love notes...money...fruit....liquor bottles...photographs. You name it! Frozen flowers in wedding ice sculptures are VERY popular right now. There is an additional $35.00 charge for freezing something into the ice before we sculpt it.
7) What's the biggest ice sculpture you've ever done? The smallest?
Well....the biggest single ice sculpture was the horse and carriage ice sculpture seen on the home page (just scroll over the IceWorks logo and it will appear). The bride had told her father when she was a little girl that she wanted to ride to her wedding in horse-drawn carriage...and when she chose (at 22) to get married, she decided on a February wedding in upstate New York. Her father order the horse and carriage to try to fulfill that wish for her...thinking that there might be inclement weather. As it turned out, there were several feet of snow on the ground that day! The sculpture was 18 feet long and 9 feet tall...sculpted from over 16,000 pounds of ice. We've also done some amazing parties here in Houston with incredible groupings of ice carvings. When Tilman and Paige Fertitta (owners of Landry's Restaurants) married, we sculpted over 950 ice carvings for their reception. We carved a huge offshore drilling rig from over 6,000 lbs. of ice and there were pulsing blue tracer lights running up from the floor to the ice carving to simulate oil pumping from the ocean floor. The rig was complete with buildings, cranes and even a tiny little helicoptor! One of the most beautiful groupings of ice sculptures we did was for a wedding at the Houston Country Club. The bride ordered a huge ice sculpture which consisted of huge tables of ice and columns with fish, mermaids and shells...all of the ice designed to contain and display the incredible food created by Master Chef Fritz Gitchener. She also ordered a HUGE martini bar in the shape of a castle. The country club had to build a room onto the building to accomodate it! It was carved from several thousand pounds of ice and was large enough for four bartenders to stand inside. They poured martinis over the shingled pointed roofs on the corner towers...the liquor tumbled round and round a course carved into the ice and then disappeared inside...only to reappear in the martini glasses held in the arched windows carved into the side of the towers!!! It really was a breathtaking grouping of ice sculptures.
We carve hundreds of tiny little sculptures all the time for parties. Some are used to hold sorbet (sorbet socles in the catalog), some are designed to hold pastries and ice creams...others are carved as centerpieces for each of the tables. Our favorite "tiny" ice sculpture though was a miniature Harley Davidson done for Bruce Springsteen on his 40th birthday. It was only 11 inches long and 8 inches high...done in fine detail.
8) How much do they cost...and (if you don't mind my asking)...how much did you charge for that Horse and Carriage??
Most of the ice sculptures that people choose range in price from about $230.00 to $400.00. We also do ice centerpieces for tabletops and the sorbet socles that are less expensive. Of course, we carve all kinds of things for different events that can range up to about $4,000. We do LOTS of ice bars and ice sculptures big enough to sit on or pose with for photographs (for fundraisers) and they are often in the $1,000 - $2,000 range. The horse and carriage was a "one of a kind" carving. It was done 17 years ago and the cost then was $15,000. It would be a lot more now ;-) .
9) What other questions do I need to ask when ordering an ice sculpture?
Well...just like any business, I guess, there are unscrupulous people who will take advantage of your inexperience. I would always ask for references...I'd want to see photographs of their work (it IS artwork, after all!). Make sure they carve the ice in a freezer and deliver in a freezer (no small consideration in Houston weather and traffic. You should always ask for a lighted display and it should be provided at no extra charge. You really can't have an ice carving without one...so we feel that they should be provided with the ice sculpture at no charge.
Having said all this, we'd like for you to know that all of our carvings are delivered to you in one of our freezer trucks...frozen solid...frosted over when it arrives. They're SO cold that we have to make sure they're delivered an hour before the function starts so that the frost has a chance to clear and they'll look perfect...like cut crystal when your guests arrive...sparkling...breathtaking. We provide professional ice carving displays with each of our ice sculptures that hold the water and light up the ice. There is absolutely no charge for the display AND we will come back to pick it up! When you order an ice sculpture from the IceWorks, we'll talk to you about the display. We deliver for weddings and parties all day long, but they all seem to end at the same time! It's impossible for us to get arou8nd to pick them all up at the appropriate time...so we ask that you simply leave the display with the reception hall (if that's ok with them), or take it home with you or send it home with someone you designate. We will then come and pick it up when our truck is in that area...usually on Tuesdays.
PLEASE don't order an ice sculpture from simple drawings. You absolutely want to see photographs of the carver's work. We think our photographs, references and experience speak for themselves.
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10) Why should I order from the IceWorks?
Well...we think there are a LOT of reasons!! We are the ice carvers of choice for most of Houston's major hotels and caterers...not the least of which are the Westin Galleria, the Omni Hotels, the Houston Country Club and River Oaks Country...and SO many others!! You can call the best chefs in Houston and ask them about our work and we feel confident that they'll recommend us. We take great care to provide the most beautiful ice sculptures you can imagine...cutting edge design and technique. We deliver in sub-zero freezers (to provide you with a carving that will last the maximum amount of time) and we provide professional ice sculpture displays at no extra charge. We have 18+ years of experience...we think you'll see the difference!
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11) How on earth did you ever get into this business?
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Jay was the chef in a four-star hotel in Washington DC when he was only 22 years old. He began to carve ice with only an ice chipper and a tree limb saw, but began almost immediately to carve intricate, architecturally sound and complex sculptures right from the start. 5 years later he was the executive sous chef at a casino hotel in Atlantic City...a huge operation with over 500 employees on the kitchen staff...11 restaurants...a cafeteria that fed over 5,000 employees on an around the clock basis. He routinely worked 80 hours a week, but his love for ice sculpture kept him at work even LONGER hours...even though he at least 20 people on his staff that were capable of carving the simple ice sculptures that the hotel required. His wife Carol realized that an ice sculpting business was a possibility and she put together a catalog (without his knowledge) and began to sell ice! Within 6 months, IceWorks had become a full-tiime business. Jay has never had an art or sculpting class...it's just an innate talent that he continues to perfect every day. He carves each and every ice sculpture for IceWorks...so when you order from us, you'll know that you'll be getting the work of a Master Ice Carver. Jay won many medals during his time as a chef...including a national award...and as an ice carver he's won several gold medals...and ultimately won 4th place in the foremost International Ice Sculpting Competion in the world in Asahikawa, Japan. His work has been featured in Country Living Magazine, and on CBS Sunday Morning with Charles Osgood.....and on countless news broadcasts locally and nationwide and in dozens of publications.
12) Do you teach ice sculpting?.
We started the IceWorks Academy several years ago. It was the first ice sculpting course accredited by the American Culinary Federation. We've taught many, many ice carvers over the years, but these days there just isn't time to teach! Jay often gives seminars for culinary students, and he's working on a series of ice sculpture instructional tapes, but we don't do formal training anymore.
13) Doesn't it bother you that you sculpt in ice and your work is lost after a few hours?xt.
We see ice sculpture as "Art at the Moment". You have to be there to see it and then you have the memory forever (and hopefully a few photographs). Since Jay was a chef for many years, he sees it like an incredible meal or a fantastic bottle of wine...beautiful flowers. It's there for you to enjoy and then you have a great memory of that place and time...that event...to keep forever.
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14) I've seen "shot blocks" at parties...can you tell me more about them?.
Yes! We do "shot slides", ice bars and "martini mountains" of all descriptions. It's hard to believe how exciting they can be at a party! Otherwise respectable adults will elbow each other out of the way to take a shot or catch a martini from a shot slide!! We have a special catalog of shot slides (just to give you an idea of how popular they are!)...with carvings of all kinds of things...with all kinds of themes...to suit any and every occasion. They can be sculpted so that liquor is poured ovr the ice and the party-goers put their mouth on the ice to "catch" it...and we've done wonderful martini slides for parties where your guests would rather catch their drink in a glass...;-)ext.
15) Where should I display an ice sculpture at a party (wedding)?
There are no rules. Consider that it is a centerpiece and should be placed appropriately...on the buffet table...on the gift table, opposite the wedding cake or anywhere in the room where a "bouquet of light" would be appropriate.
16) Can you tell me how they're delivered?
Yes. All of our sculptures are carefully packaged and packed into our freezer trucks and trailers. They are frozen solid through each step of the process. They're protected from bumps and jostling as they travel over the road. Beware of ice carvers who wrap ice sculptures up like mummies and deliver them in the back of their car!! You'll receive a dripping, half-melted ice sculpture that way! We arrive one hour prior to your event and use our lifts to lift the ice to the top of the table and onto the display. You will NEVER see one of our drivers struggling to life an ice sculpture in his arms...that's a disaster waiting to happen!
17) Are you insured? Are they dangerous?
Yes. We have been completely insured for over 17 years and we have NEVER HAD A SINGLE CLAIM!! The safety of the ice sculpture is equal to it's beauty in our minds. Ice sculptures generally weigh between 150 and 250 lbs. They have to be sculpted so that they are architecturally sound...and they must be displayed in a VERY safe way. It's one of the places that experience matters most. We have NEVER, EVER had a sculpture fall. We are totally vigilant where the safety of your guests is concerned.
18) Will you travel to carve ice at functions outside of Houston?.
Yes. We have travelled all over the world to create ice sculptures for spectacular events. If you have an interest in having ice carvings for an event outside the Houston area, please just call us!!
19) Are these only for weddings?
Oh! Absolutely NOT!!! We carve ice for every holiday...for rodeo and Mardi Gras...for the Offshore Technology Conference...for grand openings...for publicity (nothing draws attention from the public AND the media like a chainsaw and ice!). We carve hundreds of logos for corporate functions...ice for product introductions (especially new cars), for fund raisers. We can carve ice and bring it to you or we can show up and just blow them away with a live performance...complete with a DJ to set just the right emotion...chainsaws and snow flying!!
20) Do you have a catalog?
Yes! We have several catalogs and a photo disk available. We have a bridal catalog full of designs for weddings and anniversaries. We also have a huge "Master Catalog" with over 600 ice carving designs and lots of little specific idea sheets with carvings for every kind of event and holiday.. If you'd like to have a catalog, please just call and let us know and we'll send one along with the photo CD which has hundreds of color photographs of our work.
