Wonderful shelf.  Very pleased with this.  Sturdy, iron and solid wood.  Looks like the far more expensive industrial design shelves from Crate & Barrel, Pottery Barn, etc., but at a fraction of the cost.  Do understand that the "distressed" finish looks like aged wood that has been stripped, and then in a few places splattered with small specks of white paint.  You can't really see that in the photos.