I also like the look of woven wood/rattan shades with panels. And you are right, your panels should be hung at the top of the soffit. Hemming some ready made panels may not be too difficult for you if they're unlined. I've not used them, but there are some iron-on hem adhesives available. You may also be able to find a seamstress or drapery workroom to hem them for you.

Thanks, Torrey.

So, you're saying to NOT hang curtains inside the bay above each window/door, but to hang it on the actual wall at the top of the soffit in front of the bay area?

Will that make it feel cave-like and bare with nothing on windows? I've seen that done on bedroom Windows for a more intimate feeling with a window seat, but not in a kitchen.

Oh no - hang them inside the bay as high as possible.

I would say hang inside the bay windows. Also get the 96 and have them shortened. If you really can't sew anything, almost any drycleaners has alterations available - they will do this for you at a pretty low cost. I sew myself, but hate hemming pants, I have splurged on a local seamstress from the drycleaners nearby to hem for me once in a while. A huge help when you have to measure yourself, mark, and what not. She only charges $8 for pants. The hem is the same especially with no lining, only straighter.

As far as DIY curtain rods, I have three bay windows myself. When we first moved in I needed to just cover them to avoid peering eyes. We are trying to gut and completely remodel the entire house, so we are also going to eventually replace these, so I didn't want to spend much. I used IKEA brackets, very simple two dowel brackets, wooden dowels from the hardware store which I sanded and stained and as a connector I used pvc pipe connectors to make the angels and get everything snug. I just made sure the curtains I sewed up covered all the hardware in the corners, definitely a pocket curtain not a tab top type of set up. The top dowel shows a bit, but looks like a normal rod. I will probably up the quality of the set up when we install new windows, but I am definitely ok with the current set up for however long it takes (this is a 10 year renovation we figure).