It was darker than I expected, but that worked to my advantage. The directions were almost adequate at best, and not all the pieces were marked. It is solid wood, as described. one of the drawers doesn't work smoothly, and the directions for the top weren't as clear, but I'm not taking it back apart. Make sure the braces for the back have the cam nuts facing out. All in all I'm pretty happy with it, just grumpy from the out together. It looks good in the space and again,it is all wood.