29 July 2013

From the R3project to yök Casa + Cultura



After many months of playing with the idea, we finally took the plunge! Since 2012 we have been connecting dots and people and are pretty close to launching our new project: yök Casa + Cultura. yök is a project that combines eco-friendly lodging and the true culture of Barcelona into a unique new business idea, that has unfolded from the R3project. Please visit www.helloyok.com for more information.

17 May 2011

The R3project has come to an end

Hi! You reached the R3project web site, a blog about how to adapt urban housing to a green lifestyle. It is the diary of an ecological renovation of an old apartment in the heart of Barcelona, and a guide to a more responsible way of living.

This blog had been growing with our flat, ripening with the experience and evolving with the participation of our readers. Between 2006 and 2010 we published our step by step eco-renovation. The work is now finished, and so is the blog but we hope you can still get inspired by the result and find useful information for your home.

Feel free to scroll through the 5 Rs of ecodesign or visit each room by reading the round-ups in the left sidebar. We also appreciate any comments and hope you share your knowledge and thoughts about eco-friendly urban living.

For current projects by eco designer Petz Scholtus, please visit Pöko Design.

*faircompanies visited the R3project

Thanks Kirsten for a wonderful report!

23 February 2010

Open R3project - Oct 29 2010

As part of the Barcelona Design Week, we are participating in the Design Circuit, and opening the R3project (which houses the Pöko Design Studio) to show and sell eco-friendly products and interior design. Together with Matteria (good design + smart materials) and Evohé organic wine, we would like to show you around, so come and visit us on october 22nd, between 16h-20h.



Flyer designed by Ernest Vidal.

27 January 2010

R3project round-up 7: the Balcony


Although we don’t have much of it, living in the Centre of Barcelona, we love our outdoor space. Our apartment has 3 small Barcelona-style balconies, that just about fir some flowerpots, a compost bin and a washing line.

No matter how little space you have, you can always grow some of your own herbs and spices, and even vegetables on windowsills, balconies or terraces if you don’t have a garden. We really like the Leopoldo Urban Vegetable Garden for it’s slick and practical design. Used indoors and outdoors, with wheels and available in different sizes, the Leopoldo is the perfect alternative to your standard ceramic pots and fits even into small spaces. We have managed to grow anything from parsley to basil, cherry tomatoes and cucumbers, chillies and strawberries.

One of the most important features of the R3project is the Can-O-Worms compost bin. We can’t get over the fact that thousands of worms on our balcony turn all our organic scraps from the kitchen and our plants into nutritious compost that we then use as fertiliser for the plants.

We had this worm composter for over a year and half now, and had had no bad surprises. Worms and homeowners are happy. And you would be surprised how much organic waste we recycle, since we ordered the organic vegetable box by Recapte. Every 3 to 4 months we get to collect some 8 kilos of fresh compost. Read here about how to install a Can-O-Worms (with video) and here about our first compost harvest.

Quite common in Barcelona, although not so in the United States where in some places they have even been banned, drying lines are the most eco-friendly way to dry your clothes. No energy is needed, no machinery, and the clothes end up smelling fresh.

Then, on sunny days, we take out our solar oven we made in a workshop by Fundació Terra, and cook some delicious biscuits or hot bananas with melted chocolate…