Shop Richardsons Climbing

Back in February, my mom, Zach, and I were walking around a mall in Victoria, BC when Zach spotted a Bubble Tea stuffie. His mind immediately went to climbing, thinking it would make an amazing chalk bag. My mom said, of course:

"Let's do it."

She spent the next week transforming the plush beverage into a chalk bag, and it turned out really well. A few days later, my mom and I were in the states at another shopping mall when we spotted a squid-shaped Easter Egg basket. We looked at each other and saw the same thing - the world's most amazing chalk bag.

Zach was already content with his chalk bag, but this squid was non-negotiable. Once again, she worked her magic and turned the squid into a chalk bag. Zach was blown away, I was blown away. The house was in love with this chalk bag.

We took it for a spin at the climbing gym and found the same thing - everyone was in love with it. A few weeks later, Zach and I took the chalk bag (among other possessions) and moved to Germany. The Germans, too, loved the squid.

Madison Richardson's Squid Chalk Bag at Studio Bloc Masters — The Squid Chalk Bag with Madison at Studio Bloc Masters 2023

I told my mom about the praise Mr. Squid was getting, so she scoured the internet for the next big hit. That's where "The Chicken Bucket" enters the story. We visited Canada a couple of months later, and the chicken was waiting for me. This was my chalk bag.

Madison Fischer's Chicken Chalk Bag — The Chicken Bucket Chalk Bag in the Brixen World Cup Semi-Final Round

The squid and the chicken were quickly making names for themselves. We brought them to gyms all around the world, and they never failed to impress. After a while, we realized that there was a demand here. A demand for chickens and squids.

The decision was out of my hands - I was going to sell them. I set out to make my own version of the squid. That way, I could control the colour, the face, and the size. Unfortunately, my little town of Langen has no craft stores and thus no fabric, so I had to go elsewhere. Because this was all coming together during my World Cup season, I ended up buying fabric while I was on the road.

I first passed a fabric store while in Tokyo, which gave me the idea to exclusively shop for fabric while abroad.

In the end, I brought home material from Japan, Austria, Czechia, and the Netherlands. It was pretty cool.

My first mock-up took nearly eight hours to complete. It was a work of art, don't get me wrong, but eight hours of work for thirty, maybe forty bucks? No thanks.

I didn't give up, though. Little by little, I iterated on my method. I bought better tools. My technique improved. Eventually, the squids started piling up, and somewhere along the way, I acquired a passion, even a knack, for sewing.

I got creative with my colour combinations, and my mom was busy at home finding unique Easter egg baskets to convert. In the end, we put together quite the collection of chalk bags. Each one is:

Unique
Handmade
Over-priced
Super Cute
Head-Turning
In support of ambitious athletes

They are my labour of love and most unscalable endeavour.

This is a one-time sale. There is exactly one of each chalk bag, with the exception of the bunnies - there are two of each. They all seal tight to keep your chalk where it should be. First come, first serve.

Please love and cherish your bag ;)