One more photo...the drapes opened. In the meantime, drapes hung high, black outs,

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Curtains are stacked to the right side of slider opening. You see exterior curtains that I use to block heat from east-facing slider. West -facing slider does not have an exterior curtain.

I have been looking at the photos that I took for this post. Just noticed a contradiction.

Might not be immediately obvious. On the side of the slider near foot of the bed there is a scant 6 inches from opening to the wall. On side of slider near head of the bed, the nightstand is nearly flush with the opening.

I have heard about having plenty of fabric for a sense of fullness when curtains are closed.

In this case, when curtains are opened, all that fabric stacks at the sides, blocks the opening and cuts down the amount of light coming in.

How to handle?

How much natural light do you need in a bedroom? IMO get nice full drapes , blackout if you must , stack them to the sides and be done . Honestly I never understand the need for a ton of light in a bedroom where most of your time is at night.

Yes, you need them hung higher on curtain rings and with wide full panels. HM also has great ones

Thanks Lyn and Meghan for links. I measured the existing panels. There are 3@52". Should have gotten four panels. I took some better pictures of the sides of the slider. You can see how the nightstand blocks any extension of curtains. Would that look weird if curtains went to ceiling?

I like the 118" length on the HM curtains, although I think there is a way to get curtains to hang in front of a ceiling track. That would allow 120" curtains. I would be inclined to use a track with that much weight.

Here's my suggestion with H&M 118" curtains and bamboo roman shades hung high above the sliders.

Because of your nightstand and your narrow wall on the other end, I would consider motorized blinds instead of curtains. It will give you a nice clean look, keep your view open, and won't interfere with light.

Lisedv/katinpatadise, appreciate the time y'all put into your comments. I've played with photographs and ChatGPT. It's fun.

I think my photos and descriptions gave an idea of the size of the bedroom. King-size sleigh bed and nightstands barely leave circulation room. We are only in there when in bed.

I was seduced by the look of tall curtains......until I realized what it would take to remove/wash/replace them. Nasal adventures have made me a bit more picky about dust. Short curtains and clips make things so much easier.

I have decided to:

Aim for fullness with quantity/size of curtain panels

Consider lighter curtain color

Look into stainless steel clips

First you have to hang the curtains the correct length.

Thanks for visuals. Think I'll stick with 84" panels. With ceiling length panels, the juice isn't worth the squeeze.

I have updates:

I wavered between 84" and 96". Decided to look through construction photos. Good thing! Openings for those two sliders had the headers up high and 2 by 4 wood across tops of doors. There would have been no wood at 96" curtain level.

That was the easy part.

I see now why curtains are so expensive.

I have sage colored velvet curtains with pleat header

Bag of 2-prong pleat hooks

Swung ring clips to the side and hung pleat hooks on existing rings/rods

Room looks way better. Simple pleats make nice ripples

My wife had gotten a steamer for clothes, so I figured I'd steam curtains in place. Hung them backwards so I could work from inside.

This ain't working. Removed curtains, laid a beach towel on kitchen counter and ironed 8 panels. Much better.

Rods have begun to rust and plastic on rings is deteriorating. Didn't want to deal with bumps on telescoping rods. Realized track is cheaper than spliced rods.

I have the Forest group track. Distributor sells parts and pre-kitted sets. I bought the parts so I could upgrade to roller carriers.

Installed first half of the track onto east slider on Sunday.

Very happy with how things turned out. The roller carriers are great! Curtains practically open/close by themselves!