This was easy to assemble and really heavy- great for the price. There is texture to this piece which was ok for me but something to keep in mind if you plan on having kids do homework on it, etc. This was really just to eat on so I didn't think it was a big deal. The color is darker than the picture- which was why I gave it 4 stars. I would have liked it a little lighter - more of a Scandinavian piece which it is not quite. It worked for me though and I'm overall happy with it.