Most designers begin a remodel by choosing what to trash. Petz Scholtus chose what to collect from the trash to be upcycled (i.e. recycled for a higher use).
When Scholtus bought her Barcelona apartment in 2006, it had no plumbing and no electricity, though it had some choice trash, like the long piece of glass she rescued from the demolition crew. With two sawhorses -- recovered from the street -- for legs, it became her dining room table.
Other furniture was scavenged directly from the street, like a chair she later covered with old newspapers -- mostly from Scholtus' native Luxembourg -- and her ubiquitous Bidon lamps made from used jerry cans and a CFL light bulb.
She's a trained eco-designer, but she's not above simply shopping at IKEA. Much of the kitchen furniture -- the shelves, island and FSC-certified countertop -- were bought from IKEA, though the room's style-making piece are the cabinets constructed from old wine boxes (some of which once held wines drunk by Scholtus and her partner).
Scholtus wanted to prove with her remodel that green design could be affordable and stylish. Given the attention it's garnered (articles in the New York Times and Dwell, among others), it seems she has made her point.