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Gorgeous windows!

Couldn't you just install an unobtrusive curtain rod across the wall, at ceiling level? Keep drapes to the sides?

I was thinking that you could get a hospital curtain rail and afix it to the ceiling in a sort of three sided U shape and then when the curtains are pushed to the side, you have a completely clear view of the windows. To hide the rail, you could put up a molding.

Here's where I got my hospital curtain track from:
http://covoc.stores.yahoo.net/

This is a beautiful room!!

If it were my house... I'd want as much light to come in as possible, and of course I'd want privacy and to protect the furniture from fading.

But foremost, I'd want to be able to see the beautiful wood and the panes on the top half of the windows. (you're so lucky some moron didn't replace them with vinyl windows before you got there!!)

So here's what I would do.
Get some small rods that attach to the window (I bet if you look closely, you'll find nail holes to suggest this was already done in the past.) and install them on ONLY the lower panel of the windows. This will be low enough to protect the furniture and allow privacy... while allowing you to enjoy sunlight and a freeing view of the sky. as well as the beautiful wood work.

In this case... less is more.

Now, I'm not sure where you would find them, but I know they were all over my Grandma's house years ago.
It would be a narrow little rod, the length of the lower window pane... about the width of your pinkie finger.... with tiny little brass brackets to mount it close to the window.
Maybe I should start reproducing the little buggers and make my million dollars.

Oh, something I wanted to add.

by covering the lower panels... you get privacy for everything below your head... do you really need privacy for the level above your head? No. Let the sunshine in.

Solar Shades, will protect your furniture and cool the room. They are porus, so when pulled down, you can see images from the outside but still get privacy.

Also, solar shades "breathe", feel light, and are timeless. The windows are beautiful and alot for the eye to see. An elegant line would be a beautiful balance, and will not take away from the woodwork.

A warm neutral, say a light putty I would choose. Colored shades become trendy and dated quickly.
Good Luck!

Window films!

After searching around AT and designsponge I went with the window films on sliding glass doors of mine and I love them. They're also super easy to install - much easier than they look. You could just do the lower portion of the windows, it would look great. Here are a ton of sites to look into:

http://www.designspongeonline.com/2007/10/window-films.html

I went with Brume because they make them custom to your dimensions. And delivery was within a couple weeks of my order. Good luck!

I think fabric roller shades could be nice. You can make them yourself and pick any fabric you like or you can buy them. Purchased ones could be had in a light filtering fabric.

I agree that maybe only covering the bottom sash of the windows would be nice to still be able to see the muntins in the upper sash. What about a roman shade in a natural material like jute or bamboo with a 'top down' option. That will give you privacy when you are relaxing if you want it but still let light in over the top. Try smithandnoble.com. And I would get a separate shade for each window, mounted inside, so you still get the see the architectural features of the windows. good luck!

You said you don't like roman shades because you don't want to cover the wood, but you might consider hanging extra-wide roman shades in the wall space above the windows and below the ceiling. Each shade would then cover 3 or 4 windows when down, but leave the windows and woodwork completely uncovered when open. Plus you'd only have a couple of pull cords to deal with.

I also think that fabric roller shades would look nice (although dealing with 10 of them would grow tiresome).

Or you could put the money you would have spent on window coverings toward replacing the furniture fabrics with Sunbrella and enjoy the bare windows.

Wow, that looks a lot like my TV room. I agree that it was a challenge to find suitable window treatments -- we have a sectional sofa under the windows *and* a radiator, so as much as I wanted curtains, they were out of the question -- and I always think shorter curtains look a little old fashioned. We just (2 months ago) got inside-mount Roman shades from Smith & Noble. They stack neatly when pulled up so that we can see the top half of the window, which is nice on bright, sunny days. One word of advice -- it's a LOT of windows close together -- stick with a solid fabric or very neutral-looking pattern. I thought about a pattened fabric that I loved, but in that quantity -- whoa, it was overwhelming. Regarding cords on blinds/shades -- you can get a loop control instead of a regular dangling cord (usually an upgrade), but this way, your cord ends are not hanging behind the sofa when the blinds/shades are up. Good luck, this post made me smile because my room is so, so very similar!!