At 12, Lucy lived in a crowded neighborhood in Rio de Janeiro. Her family barely had money for school supplies, let alone fashion. But Lucy had a wild imagination.

She began collecting old magazines, torn curtains, and broken buttons from the street. At night, she’d sit on the floor and piece them together with glue, tape, and thread. Her first “dress” was made entirely of magazine pages, folded into flowers.

Kids at school laughed—until a local designer saw her work at a school fair. Stunned by her creativity, he invited her to train at his studio.

By 20, Lucy launched her first upcycled fashion line. Today, her eco-designs appear at fashion weeks in Brazil and Europe. She runs a free weekend school for creative teens in her old neighborhood.

Her motto? “You don’t need money to be original—you need imagination.”