No.
That's exactly what you should do.
If you choose either bamboo or roman shades, and hang them at the ceiling, wide enough to cover the side trim, you can keep them raised during the day so that all they cover is the top trim, and they will make your windows look more substantial.

Here are two examples from my previous house - I apologize for posting the same durn pictures so often, but they are the only examples I have at hand just now.

This one is one of two 9 over 9 windows on the same wall, separated by a tall cabinet. They are simple fabric roman shades.

This is our breakfast/dining room - the pair of windows look much more substantial this way. The shades are stock bamboo shades from, I think, Country Curtains, with fixed panels out to the sides.

I don't have a piece of trim to naturally mark the top of the shade. It would just be floating there above the window. I guess that means I'd _have_ to have the side panels and a rod? If I have to have both panels and a shade, maybe I'd spend as much as if I bought better panels that wouldn't look so bad closed.

There are cornices available. They were mounted to the top of the window. I took them down because they were covered in grasscloth like the walls and we stripped the walls, but I may have to recover them and put them back up to hide a roller shade.

I like your wall of cabinets and windows with the soft roman. It all fits together so prettily.

You could also use a roll-down or roman-type shade mounted on the inside of the window. It would block a bit of the window at the top when raised, but none of the trim. Here's one example, although this one doesn't have the shade completely open.
{{!gwi}}

I have the same problem in the kitchen~~large windows facing a street on a corner lot. I'm not a person who follows trends, and know sheers are not a popular thing, but in my case, it doesn't matter. I've used 3 panels per window to allow for plenty of fullness, using a tension rod on the top AND bottom, inside the sill. I placed them high enough so I can just look over the top, which is close to 3/4 of the window length. The fabric is the 'wrinkled' look sheers, not the old fashioned ultra sheer fabric.

My neighbor who also needed something for privacy thought I had them custom made. I've added a fabric valance in a completely different fabric, and have been told I have 'beautiful windows'.

I put full sheers in my last kitchen, too. It made me feel so much better at night. My wide window was over the sink, too wide for a tension rod and the there was no place to mount a rod because the window ended in cabinets. I found a cool curtain wire to screw into the sides of the cabinets that worked because they sheers -- anything else would have been to heavy.

I didn't mount them to the top of the window, either. Black glass over my head doesn't bother me.

I was willing to live with the sheers during the day in order to get rid of the black glass at night. The kitchen was white, so the sheers didn't look bad. But I don't want to use sheers as a living room window treatment...

I'm going with up/down shades/blinds. I like the look by day and by night. I'm just feeling more streamlined these days...

(I was going to say "I prefer my windows closed at night - but when other people leave theirs open so I can peek at their interior paint colors". Me, bad. lol)

Fun, I do think a series of windows, or a wall of windows, like yours, looks really good with shades. But with singletons evenly spaced around a room, it looks a little less good.

I'll be watching this thread. We have a similar problem. I've already purchased panels so I have to work with them but I need to add something. I have other issues too but I won't hijack.

Just an out of the box idea....if you don't need them for privacy and just don't like the black look at night, you can use outdoor lighting so your night scene is as pretty as your daytime one.....

Annie, sometimes I wish that this forum had a 'like' button like Facebook. I love your idea of the outside lighting.

dody

Do you want privacy, or rather, just hate the black windows at nite? We had the same issue after installation of huge floor to ceiling Marvin windows throughout our home. Similarly, our new windows either equal or eclipse the amount of actual "wall space" in places on our first floor. I framed our LR/Foyer & DR windows with drapery hung only at either end of decorative rods, just to tone down the black hole. However, I don't have any privacy concerns, and never close the window treatments. Just framing made a huge difference:). I chose a window treatment that was almost exactly the same color as our paint color.

Do you want to totally eliminate the black hole look at night, as in curtains closed up tight as a tick?

The idea of outside lighting is actually a very good one. We have done that on our property as well, and it does make a huge difference when you have large windows, a nice setting, and little need for privacy.

I like the pic of the roman shade mounted above the window. You mentioned you have already have cornices that were covered by a PO? Why not recover the cornices in a textile of your liking, reinstall the cornices, then "stack" a roman shade or the like up under the cornice. Since I am not sure how much big your cornice pieces are, this is just a stab in the dark-type solution. You already have the cornices...

Do you have a pic of your space? That would be helpful for other suggestions. You've posted in the right place, there's alot of creative people here, especially when it comes to working out a tough situation.

And remember that 80% of the natural light in the room comes in through the top 20% of the window, so covering the glass at the top can make a big difference in how much light your room gets from daylight.

Outside lighting is a great idea if uour windows are appropriately sized. Ours are too large for outside lighting alone to be effective. We tried. Nice while outside, but no go from inside.

I tend to prefer panels over other wt's, however, you could do a double rod with stationary panels on the ends and something different in the middle to be pulled closed at night. It would cover the trim but look more interesting than just plain panels.

We've used sheers in our kitchen too. However a single thickness is too sheer and adding a lining would be too light blocking. When I sewed them I lined them with another piece of sheer fabric - that was 'just right'!

I'm a fan of valances to cover the top of the window and hide a duette style shade underneath...duettes because they provide privacy and insulation yet fold up flattest so unseen during the day. Plus, to me, valances add softness to the space, are another opportunity to spread color in the room, and quiet the echo in a room, making it more cozy. I just feel warmer with window treatments....