I LOVE this desk and have gotten so many compliments on it. It was easy enough to set up, though the instructions could be more detailed to help with alignment. I think I accidentally assembled this backward so that the little under shelf is on the right hand side (which I prefer) and doesn't utilize the little support bar for the shelf, but I haven't had any issues with is so far (except I tend to bump my leg on the corner of the shelf at least once a week). The tabletop does have a grainy texture, but I find that as long as I have a couple sheets of paper under whatever I'm writing on, it's not difficult to work with.