Although I was a little concerned about the flimsiness of this lamp because of the reviews  the fact that I knew Id need it at is tallest set up because I have 10 foot ceilings, it has worked out phenomenally! The packages arrived very damaged but the physical quality of the items (lamp shade  lamp base) were not harmed. However, I did find, after initially setting it up, that the lamp didnt turn on. I called customer service  they promptly sent me an entire new one at no extra charge. It happened again with the lamp. We tried several different new bulbs but they were all the same type. When I grabbed a different kind, it finally worked, so I think it may have to do with only working with certain bulb types. The base is marble under the metal, so its plenty heavy to secure it from falling it