AT HOME : The Icemen Cometh

FROM ICE SCULPTURES to snow storms, “there is no limit to size, and there is nothing we can’t duplicate in ice,” promises Chikato Bros. Ice Company partner Jim Chikato. All Chikato’s sculptures begin as 40x20x10-blocks of ice. As the size of the piece is determined, the blocks are fused together to attain the necessary height and depth.

Each sculpture is hand-tooled by an award-winning Japanese master ice carver (ice-carving school--for talented chefs--is a seven-year commitment) and have included a horse and eagle for Sylvester Stallone’s 40th birthday party ($600), a 1990 Cadillac and a Nissan 300ZX ($600) for a business presentation and life-size Tommy Trojan ($1,000) created for a wedding. A sculpture is at its peak for the first few hours and lasts at least 5 before it shrinks considerably.

Chikato Bros. Ice Company, 2161 Sacramento St., Los Angeles; (213) 622-4181, (213) 623-8080.