The finish on this fireplace was rather impressive with the exception on the slate. It's a bit too dark in my opion but it looks good from a distance. The other issue I have is that were three imperfections in the finish on the top front peice. The finish was rubbed of so to speak. I assume this happened during shipping. The fireplace was packaged well but in my opinion it was do to the overall weight of the box. I was able to fix these issues before the homeowner came home and by the time I told her she said it didn't bother her.  These few imperfections are what brought my ratting down to 4 stars in conjunction with the fact that it is particle board under its surface but again, the finish was great so the particle board is livable.