Dad’s Follies, The Oldest and Largest antique Metal Mold Company in the World
A Family Owned Company
We began truthfully, with a toothpick holder, purchased by our mother, Lorry on a rainy day, from a small Antique Shop in New Hampshire. After collecting several hundred toothpick holders, Mom decided to become an Antique Dealer in Art glass. One day on the search for art glass for this new “Antique” business, Mom found a lump of metal that when she opened it exploded with the detail and beauty of a poinsettia ice cream mould. The love and appreciation for moulds was born. Several months later the opportunity arose to buy 10,000 ice cream moulds, she did and that was the beginning. As Mom used to described them, “The moulds are one of the few things in life that always seem to make people smile.”
Our name ….it was a result of one of our family dinner conversation. Dad felt that if we were really going to be a business, we must be serious and have a name. That prompted all sorts of discussion and suggestions from the family, then their five children and Grandma Mac. The end result – “Dad’s Follies”. No one is really sure who or what the ‘follies’ refers to, but the name stuck.
For over 40 years Dad’s Follies has been specializing in buying and selling metal chocolate and pewter ice cream moulds. These days you find us at show displaying over 2700 different moulds or on the ‘web’. The business has now passed into the hands of the second generation with Cherie and Butch at the helm.
I have several molds that were my fathers. He worked for Sealtest Daries from the 40’s through the 1960’s and had a side business of making ice cream molds for people for special occasions. I have ordered your catalogue, I am so happy to know one exists. We have passed the desire to collect molds onto one of my parents Grand daughter-in-laws I want to thank you for keeping the interest in them alive.
Do you have a shop?
No Debbie we don’t have a shop. I just do the website and occasionally a private show.
Love your website
Thank you.
What chocolates work best in the molds
I like Merckens chocolate melts.
Do you still go to brimfield ?
I’m sorry to say that – no, we no longer go to Brimfield. We will be going to Sutton MA in November to do the Christmas market at Vaillancourt Folk Art.
Do you still buy chocolate molds? I have over a 1000 to sell
Yes, we do. The best way is to email me dadsfollie@aol.com . If you could send group pictures of the molds we can go from there. Cherie
This is a fantastic website! The molds are of high quality and I never tire of looking at them.
Lots of great info and available molds to purchase.