I've had pleated blinds, metal horizontal blinds, vertical blinds, and wood blinds. Even though there are pretty pictures of blinds, blinds are not my favorite, especially vertical blinds. Blinds are impersonal, not cozy imho, and pleated blinds are very difficult to clean. They attract dust and pet hair, I think, by static, and vacuuming does not get it all. Horizontal blinds, if cracked open for some light, leave a striped pattern on the window which I don't like, are a pain to dust, and are pretty much "all or nothing", and you can't leave blinds open at night if you value privacy. Vertical blinds remind me of corporate conference rooms. Sorry, I hope I'm not offending anyone. Curtains on the other hand, can be soft and flowy, let light in without compromising privacy. You can wash them or dry clean them. You don't have to open and close every single day to adjust for light/privacy conditions. Curtains are easy to change out, and you don't need a custom size if your windows are not standard sized. I haven't had the pleasure of roman shades yet, that's my next new thing to try. More than you probably wanted,mikneleh... LOL! Have fun with your decision.

Vertical or horizontal? Light cream if you want to allow light in when closed. Do you have to have access - waklking through them?

Looks like some of them open...it would be cool to get some glass paint and paint the windows to look like stained glass...just pick you favorite colors and go at it

There is no right answer! It largely depends on the room and what you are looking to accomplish. If your budget is such that you can only have one, I would opt for a blind or shade so you can create some privacy and light control. You can always add drapery later to create a soft touch. If you have some pictures to upload I would be happy to give you some suggestions. Best of luck...