Graycare (graycare.net) is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites. Learn More
2025 is time to start a party with shaped ice. I’ll show you which shapes ice molds and trays can make, and show you which brands make the best ones.
3D ice cubes are easy to make at home, when you have a drinkable water supply, and you’ve purchased an ice maker that’ll work in your freezer.
For shaped ice cubes, start with these brands! #ad - #1 Tovolo, #2 DRINKSPLINKS, #3 Fairly Odd Novelties, #4 MasterPieces, #5 True Zoo, #6 ACOOKE, #7 Nax Caki, #8 W&P, #9 LYWUU
If you want only one to four “Very 3D shaped ice cubes, then you want an ice mold.
If you want several (six to twelve) somewhat 3D shaped ice cubes, then you want an ice tray.
The archetypal ice mold makes a single cube of ice in a very detailed and three-dimensional shape. The archetypal ice tray makes multiple ice cubes with lesser details since the mold only shapes one side, and the other side freezes flat like the surface of a pond.
‍
With a mold for a single three-dimensional ice cube, fill the mold to the “fill line” or the surface, gently lower the mold cap into the mold, freeze the mold for 4-6 hours.
Before removing the cap, run the mold under warm tap water to loosen up the grip, then peel the cap up, and finally squeeze the sides of the mold to release the ice cube into the glass.
With a tray for multiple two-dimensional ice cubes, simply pour drinkable water to fill each groove in the tray, and place it inside the freezer.
I like to use a kitchen rag or dish towel when pouring fresh water into an ice cube mold or tray, and gently patting the outside dry before putting it into the freezer, so that it won’t stick to the freezer or cause “freezer fuzz” from too much humidity.
‍
Today we’re talking about “Fun Shape Ice Molds”, not the average whiskey drinker’s ice block ⬛ or ⚫ ice ball.
The most common hedonistic ice cube shapes are “the perfect cube” and “the perfect sphere” because they fit well in whiskey glasses. But ever since kitchen creatives learned heat resistant silicone molds used for baking also freeze liquid into fancy shapes, the realm of ice mold became much more three dimensional.
These are some of today’s most popular shapes to freeze into an ice cube: animal, banana, bear, boat, brain, bullet, butterfly, cat, Christmas, crescent, cylinder, diamond, dinosaur, dog, duck, egg, fish, flower, football, grenade, gun, heart, hexagon, honeycomb, leaf, lemon, letters, monogrammed, octopus, oval, owl, pumpkin, rectangle, ring, rose, shark, skull, sports ball, star, turtle, or a map of U.S. states made of frozen H2O.
‍
đź’§ Shop Tovolo on Amazon. #ad
The Tovolo brand’s excellent variety of three-dimensional ice cube shapes comes second to none. What’s more, Tovolo’s singles are stackable if you buy multiples of the same shape. It’d be impossible for me to list out all the ice cube shapes and emblems available from the Tovolo brand, because they’re always coming out with cool new party ideas in all frozen forms. Like, even for the most sought after shapes, hearts and skulls of course, the Tovolo brand is known for special “sliding lid and container” for ease of use to make the perfect 3D ice cube for people with drinkable water and a freezer who’ve never done it before.
‍
đź’§ Shop DRINKSPLINKS Letters / Shapes on Amazon.
You’ll be topped-up with elation when a DRINKSLINKS drop into your beverage. To celebrate a particular person, DRINKSPLINKS freezes all the letters of the alphabet — so you can choose the initials of a special person, for example. In terms of shape, people seeking simple, basic geometric molds to keep straight and round ice cubes uniform and symmetrical when done freezing in a DRINKSPLINKS.
‍
đź’§ Shop Fairly Odd Novelties on Amazon.
What matters most, of course, is finding the shape you like! The Fairly Odd Novelties brand brings together the most random and surprising selection of oddly-specific ice cube tray shapes. If it’s a movie night for Saving Private Ryan, then the MoldFun brand also offers ice cubes which make good gifts for veterans and servicepeople of the United States. Unfortunately in 2025, we still can’t find a good food-grade silicone factory making consumer products in the U.S., by which 1,000s of silicone molds could fuel America’s tech-advanced materials manufacturing economy, industry, and employment. I bet we could make some really innovative silicone products here, if we chose the shape.
‍
đź’§ Shop MasterPieces on Amazon.
Football fans across America would indulge in a nice and frosty beverage chilled by their favorite team’s emblem. The MasterPieces is officially licensed by the NFL and NCAA associations to manufacture and sell sports memorabilia, including puzzles, games, and party supplies.
‍
Which True Zoo brand ice cube shapes are coolest? I especially like their U.S. map ice cube tray, which includes only 38 cubes, so they combined a few New England states into one chunk of ice, a common annoyance for people living in those states, I’m sure. Michigan gets one cube all its own, which keeps connected the LP and UP as it should be. Can we switch over to sports-themed ice cubes? True Zoo’s selection of baseballs and footballs — two very American sports — are unique because the outside of the ice mold is colored and textured to resemble an actual white-threaded baseball or brown pig-skin football. Let me switch one more time to True Zoo’s diamonds, because their unique size-diamond tray makes more cubes than other single-diamond ice molds reviewed today. Again with True Zoo, their assortment seems as random a chilly winter mad hatter, as I’ve come to know the shaped ice cube industry.
‍
ACOOKE specializes in four-cube molds in the shape of 3D sports balls — but also some uncommon 3D animal shapes. When you watch sports and drink with three of your buddies, this hard-base and soft-lid ice mold makes four identical ball-shaped ice cubes per batch.
‍
You won’t find any new ice concepts from Nax Caki’s range of four-cube and six-cub shaped ice mold trays. However, if you’ve only found the shape you want in a “single cube ice mold”, then the Nax Caki brand might offer the same shape in a tray that lets you freeze multiple shaped ice cubes for friends.
‍
đź’§ Shop W&P on Amazon.
The W&P brand is most well known for their colorful soft silicone large ice cube trays, but the same creative ice maker product designers, also crafted several unusual 3D shapes I don’t know the name of. Do you know the name of these groovy textured three-dimensional shapes?
‍
To freeze this ice mold review with one for pet lovers, the LYWUU brand offers all kinds of dog and cat ice molds, so to join your friends with pets in a pet-friendly cocktail party!
‍
For two-dimensional trays that resemble a traditional ice cube tray, when it’s made of food-grade silicone, then it’s typically temperature resistant from “Very Cold” to “Very Hot”.
I’m winking and smiling at kitchen bakers, because it’s homemakers in the kitchen that drove demand for soft silicone trays that work in the freezer and the oven. For safety reasons, please read the product instructions before you use a product hot or cold.
We kept it cool today, we only listed molds and trays advertised for special ice cube shape making. However, the truth is, several brands selling soft silicone molds appeal to chocolatiers and candy makers. See the Webake brand and homeEdge brand for example.
I don’t know the first thing about homemade chocolates and fudges, because I’ve gotten mine from Mackinac every summer.
I’m glad in 2025, we’ve got over 50 three-D and two-D ice cube shapes that are easy to use before you start a drinking party.
