Thank you all. The brackets are for the current winodw treatment & will be removed for any new treatment. I have brilliance pleated shades in all my bedroom windows & love them. I was thinking Silhouettes like this http://www.bing.com/images/search?q=hunter+douglas+silhouette&view=detail&id=8A0182BF35371A06006752B030D6C09A143C3079&first=31 Or maybe a wood blind like this? http://www.bing.com/images/searchq=hunter+douglas+wood+blinds&view=detail&id=A1EEEE2FA48A8F945AEB5CF2BB92451B918325F5&first=121 Do either of these ideas seem workable? I also would love a resource recommendation to make theae options more affordable. Thanks so much for all your help!

I think we're going to take the prudent route on this one and get the pro's to take this out - although they haven't shown much interest in responding to either my phone call or in-person visit, must be a busy time of year for them. That's a problem with one glass company in town and the next closest several hundred air or boat miles away. If worst comes to worst we'll do the tape and break. If I go with that I'll report back with details and lessons learned. This particular window is not tempered glass. Large shard breakage is a big concern for me. Having to call my fellow firefighter/EMT's because of an accident is NOT something I want to have to do - for multiple reasons!

Oaktown and dekeoboe, thank you both for your responses. I had difficulty signing back into gardenweb and couldn't access until now. It's a relief to know that others have no problems operating a shade with large dimensions. Reaching a roller shade at 70" would be no problem for me. Dekeoboe, thanks for the heads up about a clutch mechanism. The problem is that I wanted solar shades on a roller shade. A local shade shop tells me that due to the open weave of solar mesh, it is inadvisable to use the material in a roll up shade format. After about a year or two the mesh at the bottom would begin to pull apart. That makes sense. Code for my gulf coast area requires that glazing needs to be LowE3-366 glass or an equivalent glass by another glass manufacturer. My goal is to further filter out uv and infra red rays beyond what the glass provides to eliminate fading as much as possible. There is not enough side wall space for fabric. I need some view retained through whatever is used as will feel too closed in with regular solid shades. It's a problem I'm still researching.

The concept of "public vs. private spaces" in a home seems very outmoded to me. A home, now more than ever, is a place to create your very own nest, and if you want to display your lovely family throughout, it's absolutely fine. In fact, it sure beats hanging "art" that matches the sofa or other such nondescript and soulless items. I love your thought to display your photos, and Maureen's shared arrangements look great. Go for it.