Roman shades either in fabric or matchstick. You could also try drapes to the floor at the sliders, but hang them from rings so they open and close easily.

We did a large woven shade over our sliders like this photo (we skipped the drapes)
http://houzz.com/photos/718176

Definitely ' deep six' those vertical blinds and get some woven blinds of some kind. Match stick style in a nice rich color would look good, and warm up the space. The light gets through while the blinds add texture to the room.

Adding a wide moulding around window and slider ( attaching the moulding about 1/4" away from the edges makes for ease in installation/DIY). Then add the blinds at the same elevations for the window and slider. Rod for curtain just to the top of the blind, making sure the rod is just a little below the ceiling. We have that and it is such a beachy/timeless/elegant look.

Agree with auntqueenie, Those blinds have to go. Remind me of going through the car wash!! Woven blinds are the way to go.

Good fixes above but at some point you might want to consider replacing sliders with French doors.

I don't understand the allure for French doors over a quality slider?They take up space, are less energy efficient and are problematic in certain climates! Keep the slider and the above pictured 3 panel by Bali is functional and looks great! IMO, I've seen to many problems with French door's and if it's a high usage entrance, sliders are the way to go and, you have many more decorating options without sacrificing space! & it's so nice to have a fresh cross breeze with a screen on the slider. The kind of screen that is concealed when not in use. I'm all for fashion but, function and efficiency must take priority! It IS possible to have the best of both world's.

French doors around $2600, plus installation. Bali blinds around $750.

In our former home the layout was similar. We glassed in the porch area and installed terra cotta tiles. Then we removed the sliding doors altogether. It looked great and gave us much more usable floor space.

Your yard looks private, like ours...if so, why clutter it with heavy blinds/shades/draperies? We have an 8' sliding patio door with large windows on both sides, AND another large window on the left. We love looking out to the backyard, and dreaded covering up the view. Our solution was to mount short swing-arm rods at the ceiling. We hung draperies (floor-to-ceiling) on the swing arms in specific locations along the bank of windows. Thus, the windows are "framed", but the view is always there!

@intown has got the right idea: elegant, light and serves the purpose.

ddelora pictures please! That sounds like my kind of solution as I have a similar layout and enjoy my garden view. I would love to see how this looks.

My bedroom slider in the pic has 2 layers: the matchstick blinds and a very translucent filmy drape. The filmy drape is great when the blinds are open: it still provides just a hint of privacy. (Please excuse the unmade bed-- i was in the middle of doing laundry!)

janwg, does that actually provide enough privacy at night with the lights on?

Having inherited white verticals on my sliders and most windows in FL I assumed they would be one of the first things to go. However, I find them quite practical as you can control and direct the sunlight, can have the window open yet block the room for privacy and they are good for keeping out hot sun. They do tend to clank together a lot in the wind however. I put sold wood look blinds that match the cabinets in the west facing kitchen (to further block the sun). I put a roman shade in the den/guest room. Looks good, but room is too exposed when it's open. Don't like living in a fishbowl. Fence and hedges are only so high.

Thank you all for your input and photos. Although I think French doors are beautiful I think opening and closing a hundred times a day to let the cats/dog in-out might drive me insane. I really like the molding idea with the shades but I have alarm window breaks at the tops of both sides of sliders.......argh. I may just need to try and do matchstick shades or woven wood and I just need to measure from alarm to alarm or do an outside mount....not sure. I really like babbs50's look that looks so nice. thank you all

what about onesided glass hun ,,u can see out but no,one can see in ,,

Don't they make verticals now in woven look finishes? Maybe that would work. I'm for function FIRST. Then you can consider what style might work with your situation.

You are welcome, I had thought about drapes, but on either side of the slider there are stationary windows. Then on the right of the slider about six inches away from the trim on the window we have a built in corner cabinet so I did not have a lot of room for a decent stack of drape. The other reason the door had to be covered was the sun. I did not want it to fade a navy linen sofa. Good luck to you.

I'm with ddelora I would take all of those window treatments down, if you want something put curtains on the screened in porch.

mmcdonald36 What about something like these Bamboo Curtain Panels?

One thing you can do to improve a slider that is on the back of a house but also on a screened in porch is remove the screen from the slider. I really don't think it has a function and takes about five bi uses to remove because they are spring loaded. I think from your photo that you have the screen on it.

justgot, those are very attractive, but again it depends on if privacy is an issue (obviously you can see right through those panels) and if blocking light in hot weather is desired. The bali shades look as though they may block a bit more.

We opted for heavy velvet curtains to the floor. We actually have them on a tension rod for now inside the door frame as a temporary setup. Big rings would be preferred for ease of operation. the reason we went heavy was for light blocking, one space is our main den and when you watch movies in the day we wanted to block the sun. the other space is a small guest house (one room) & our guests like to sleep in (they're on vacation here! :-))

capeanner, I made my suggestion on what the OP ( mmcdonald36 ) had written and on the fact she has a sun room beyond the sliders. This is part of what she wrote in her last comment:

"I may just need to try and do matchstick shades or woven wood and I just need to measure from alarm to alarm or do an outside mount"

With all that in mind, I thought my suggestion would work for her needs. The panels I posted can also be lined if needed, though I did not mention that in my own post because of her sun room. I can see, in your situation, why you'd prefer the vertical blinds, I've had them before and loved them for all the reasons you mentioned, but I don't think the OP has the same needs as you do and I did. In our current home we have an enclosed porch on the front of our home such as the OP has on what appears to be the back of her. We have french doors leading out to the porch. Rarely do I feel the need for privacy because the screened in porch adds a barrier between me and the outside world. Only when I'm home alone at night do I close the curtains for "privacy". And really that's all in my head as you can't see inside to the Gentleman's Parlor from the outside. I've checked many times.

I did say "if". Can't imagine that of privacy or light weren't issues there would be any need to hang anything, particularly with a room or screened porch beyond the sliders.

I'm guessing for aesthetics maybe? That's part of why I use window treatments, they're pretty and add to the rooms decor. I'll be putting some up in my shed purely for decoration.

Ref; mmcdonald.

I don't know about stateside, I live in the UK In England we can get blinds that are incorporated within the glazing they can be electrically operated or manually with a magnet. I have Bi-fold doors with these in and they are great no washing or dusting. And cost around £200 per door leaf. sounds like a good solution for you.

I can't tell how high the ceiling is in your space, but it looks dark. If so, you might want to consider adding a fixed transom window over the sliders to let in more light. I just installed 8 foot sliders in a dark room - very happy. For window covering, I used an electric roller shade across the entire width made out of a textured solar shade material. Can leave it open a foot at the bottom for my dogs' egress. Have fun!

The room seems very dark and cold. If it was my house, I would definitely remove the blinds to let the light in. To warm up the room and to give it some personality, I would add curtain panels selected for the style/print. I would never close them, but instead have them solely for aesthetic purposes and choose panels to cheer up the room some. If privacy was needed, I would install bamboo shades or outdoor sun shades on the windows in the sunroom. I would also concise adding potted plants, such as ficus trees in front of windows to connect with the outdoors and to make the room more organic feeling.

Suggestions for?? What exactly are you hoping to achieve?

The comment by kingsway1 reminds me of the wonderful insulated windows I saw in Finland when I visited there in the early '90s. They were horizontal blinds between the glass layers, operable from the outside, and of course never needed cleaning at all. Great product. Then one could add whatever decorative draperies or curtains simply for color.

The dark look of the photo may be a result of the lens overcompensating for the bright reflection on the floor.

There are several different coverings available
Roman shades, shutters, woven woods, to name a few come in a vertical application for matching to horizontal windows.
Major mfg like Hunter Douglas have website application that you can view the products and I does you upload, check out might give you some more ideas.
My Hunter Douglas site is
alabamablindsandshutters.com