:) and sometimes, the window's just not going to shut at all...if they won't, you wind up with something similar to my situation, where I have an inch gap between the top of the window and the frame. I used the pink 'rigid' insulation to close the gap - they also make this thin 'closed cell' foamy stuff that's apparantly used to insulate under door sills or something. for one winter? clear packing tape will hold it in place, I used the clear silicone caulk, because I've had better luck removing it than latex caulk. I would definately use the 'window film' described above to further seal the window off - and hang a heavy drape in front of it, just to be sure.

So its been months but as an update. I get to my build last night and they installed Atrium, their preferred brand. I flipped, the builder apparently never heard back from the Milgard rep and then sort of forgot. I am livid. On the other hand, my cousin bought a "green" home and I checked out her triple pane Atrium windows and they were quite nice, however, I do not have that line of Atrium so I am in a real pickle.

I'll preface this by saying that my house is a ranch with many mid-century modern touches but also traditional aspects such as 6-panel doors. Our furniture is mainly MCM. I love our house, but am surprised by how often people spontaneously say what a nice house it is. Hence, my comments on how I appreciate our "dated" window coverings: First, I enjoy my mini-blinds in my office and living room. Both have bow windows. We can look out, but don't feel exposed. These are 6 foot windows about a foot above the floor. In the living room I have sheer draperies that I close at night. In our dining area on the back of the house we have 24 feet of windows/a sliding door that all go to the floor. On those I have vertical blinds (how dated!) that the previous owners installed. They have vertical lines so when closed they look like striped draperies. When tilted open I don't feel exposed but can see the garden in the back. For temperature control we also have honeycomb blinds that we pull down only on days with extreme heat or nights with extreme cold.

IMO solar shades to control the light and heat they give privacy during the day and allow you to keep the view and drapes at night for privacy . As for your dilemma now no one expects all the windows in a house to look exactly the same outside you are worrying over nothing IMO