Winnipeg father carves ice castle in honour of daughter’s birthday
A Winnipeg father’s icy creation in honour of his daughter’s birthday is bringing a bit of winter wonder to his neighbourhood.
Brent St. John carved a castle out of ice to celebrate his daughter Abigail’s third birthday.
The frosty fortress is a fitting birthday gift.
“My daughter is three years old now. She was born Feb. 2, 2020,” St. John told CTV News Winnipeg in an interview.
“That’s the year I started ice carving. So every year, she's going to get ice sculptures.”
St. John started carving soon after he moved to Winnipeg and realized his new prairie home could flatline his favourite hobby – snowboarding.
“I found out there was no mountains here, but your temperatures stay below zero. I needed a new hobby and ice carving came to be,” he said.
St. John always had natural artistic talent, but never an outlet to express it. His new home presented plenty of blank, snowy canvasses on which to hone his skills.
As the snow melted away, and his love of the art form grew alongside his daughter, St. John found new mediums to practice. In the warmer months, he started etching on glass, and also dabbled in wood carving.
When the snow returned at the beginning of the winter of 2022, St. John started making the ice blocks at his Transcona home that would eventually form the castle.
He finished the project in time for Abigail’s birthday, but is still adding some detail work, like a carving of a particularly regal Peppa Pig.
It’s a birthday tradition he hopes to continue for years to come.
“This year is the castle. Next year is going to be something completely different, I’m sure."
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
'They needed people inside Air Canada:' Police announce arrests in Pearson gold heist
Police say one former and one current employee of Air Canada are among the nine suspects that are facing charges in connection with the gold heist at Pearson International Airport last year.
House admonishes ArriveCan contractor in rare parliamentary show of power
MPs enacted an extraordinary, rarely used parliamentary power on Wednesday, summonsing an ArriveCan contractor to appear before the House of Commons where he was admonished publicly and forced to provide answers to the questions MPs said he'd previously evaded.
Leafs star Auston Matthews finishes season with 69 goals
Auston Matthews won't be joining the NHL's 70-goal club this season.
Trump lawyers say Stormy Daniels refused subpoena outside a Brooklyn bar, papers left 'at her feet'
Donald Trump's legal team says it tried serving Stormy Daniels a subpoena as she arrived for an event at a bar in Brooklyn last month, but the porn actor, who is expected to be a witness at the former president's criminal trial, refused to take it and walked away.
Why drivers in Eastern Canada could see big gas price spikes, and other Canadians won't
Drivers in Eastern Canada face a big increase in gas prices because of various factors, especially the higher cost of the summer blend, industry analysts say.
Doug Ford calls on Ontario Speaker to reverse Queen's Park keffiyeh ban
Ontario Premier Doug Ford is calling on Speaker Ted Arnott to reverse a ban on keffiyehs at Queen's Park, describing the move as “needlessly” divisive.
'A living nightmare': Winnipeg woman sentenced following campaign of harassment against man after online date
A Winnipeg woman was sentenced to house arrest after a single date with a man she met online culminated in her harassing him for years, and spurred false allegations which resulted in the innocent man being arrested three times.
Woman who pressured boyfriend to kill his ex in 2000s granted absences from prison
A woman who pressured her boyfriend into killing his teenage ex more than a decade ago will be allowed to leave prison for weeks at a time.
Customers disappointed after email listing $60K Tim Hortons prize sent in error
Several Tim Horton’s customers are feeling great disappointment after being told by the company that an email stating they won a boat worth nearly $60,000 was sent in error.