When decorator Lisa Murray asked her Los Gatos neighbor and client what she had in mind for the nursery of her daughter-to-be, Wendy Riggs made it clear: “Cute, but not cutesie. No ruffles.”

Wendy, whose story about the birth of her daughter was recently featured in the Mercury News, knew that request wasn’t going to be as easy to satisfy as it seemed. She had been searching online for crib bedding for weeks, but every time she plugged in “girl”, all that came up was pink. “Not even purple!” Wendy said. She finally came upon the designer Glenna Jean, who sells her McKenzie bedding through Baby Depot, Target and other retail and online stores, and fell in love with an Asian Marimekko — inspired set in red, lemongrass, gray and black. And the inspiration for the rest of the modern nursery was set.

That’s when Lisa came in. Wendy and Lisa are neighbors and good friends. But that didn’t stop Lisa from starting with the formality of a design board to show Wendy what she had in mind, right down to an end table, chandelier and a mural Lisa painted herself.

The house Wendy shares with her husband, two boys and newborn daughter has an angular, Miami-modern feel. Lisa loves modern, but likes to inject a touch of vintage as well. So along with the modern bedding, Lisa suggested a painted mural that included a nostalgic image — a silhouette of a skipping girl. The image is iconic in Australia, where Lisa went to college, much like the Morton salt girl in a raincoat in the U.S. The skipping girl gave the nursery movement, Lisa said, and the silhouette left room for the imagination.

“I like the idea of giving them the outline and they can make up their own stories,” she said.

Along with the four base colors, she injected a few splashes of sky blue — in butterflies she painted on the wall and ceiling, and in a little bird statue that sits under glass. (She bought it at Pier 1 for $8, painted it blue and _ Voila! _ called it “Victoriana”.)

Lisa also played with scale, sitting a large red lamp ($49 from Ikea) on a small black table ($79 from Ikea) to give a Dr. Seuss or “Alice Through the Looking Glass” feel. The child-size black leather chair ($80 from Target) adds to the whimsey, as does the wall flower lamp ($9 from Ikea). The rug with bird motif ($28 from Urban Outfitters) pulls in the lemongrass color. And a black glass chandelier ($126 from www.gallery802.com) adds an edgy glamorous look.

Wendy loves the space. “It’s the best decorated room in the house by a longshot,” she said. “Now I’m concerned the boys are going to be jealous.”

Lisa did a beautiful job creating a stylish, modern nursery that suits Wendy perfectly.

But that could present its own set of problems down the road.

“Who knows?” Wendy said. “Maybe I’ll end up with a daughter who wants nothing but ruffles and pink.”

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Modern Prairie Style
Artists Design Modern Kitchen with Stainless Sculpture
Rose Garden Mid-Century Modern

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