MASON, Ohio – Ice cream is usually a special treat. Especially in the summertime. 

For 20 years, Tucker's Whippy Dip has been serving up soft-serve on East Main Street in Mason. But ten years an ice cream mistake has led to a popular tradition. 

“An art teacher was making a cone and they couldn't finish it correctly to make it look pretty so they just put eyes and ears on it to make it look like an elephant,” explained Julia Shutrump, a 3-year employee.

Customers can order whatever they want and workers will use their own creativity and imagination to bring it to life in the force of ice cream. 

“We wing it for the crazy ones. The elephants, dogs, cats, unicorns all have like a base and they should all look the same. If someone orders something we've never made before then it's up to use to use our imagination.”

Shutrump said she's only been stumped once when a customer ordered a Savitar - a DC Comics villain.

“He had to show us a picture. It kind of looks like a Transformer with spikes all over it.”

Sonic the Hedgehog was one of Shutrump's most creative piece. She dipped the cone in blue raspberry and used waffle cone pieces to make the spikes.

Unicorns are the “it” cone this summer, but Shutrump doesn't know why. She thinks maybe the rainbows and colorful sprinkles are attractive to the younger kids. 

Tucker's also serves up banana splits and floats. You can also grab a hot dog.

Some of Tucker's most creative character cones have been a Santa cone, and a nod to America's favorite hippo, Fiona.