After looking at blinds and tossing around the idea of making curtains, DH and I may have agreed on what to do. I think we're going to go with curtains on a decorative traverse rod that cover both the upper and lower window. They will open away from the fireplace and the stack will cover the outer wall (if that makes sense). But I have another question.

How high should I go? If you look back at the picture in my original post, the upper edge of the top window is 14' from the floor. Should I get curtains that just cover that height, or should I go up even higher (I think there is 4' of wall space above the window)?

I'm not sure what would look more silly (if anything): to have the empty wall space above the curtains, or to have curtains that go up pretty high and cover a wall. If you think I should go higher, how high? Are there any photoshop experts out there who can help me visualize varying heights?

The pics from dawnp in my original post show curtains that don't go up too far, and though I like how they look, they don't have all of the wall space above.

Thanks again!

Here is a link that might be useful: Original Post