Anu Suebsawangkul, in her bedroom, has a dominant black and white theme in her Clayton, Mo., studio apartment.

ST. LOUIS - When Anu Suebsawangkul and her family moved to St. Louis from Chicago five years ago, she found a cheap apartment complex where her brother, sister and she could have their own places.

But one big challenge loomed: Her apartment measured just 408 square feet. The night she moved in, Anu made a beeline to the store for white paint. Clean, fresh white. She and her friends spent hours applying it.

Little by little by little, as in cash Anu feathered her tiny nest: a white slipcover on the sofa; a tall white headboard with built-in recessed lighting for her bed a splash of drama with a zebra-print rug.

Anu went online and discovered the decor of Dorothy Draper. Draper, considered the first interior decorator in America, designed hotels in modern Baroque style. Once Anu had a plan, she made sure every square inch of her apartment fit the style, from the ornate black lattice-work pattern handpainted in her hallway to the starburst mirror ($50) in the entry.

Anu submitted photos for a design contest in Metropolitan Home magazine. She won for "Swankiest Small Space." Her prize? A bathtub that she plans to sell.