This fan is gorgeous and very unique. I don't feel it was as dark as most reviewers have mentioned. But the blades did have a smell of stain for a few days when removed from the box. Also, I read the reviews about how hard this fan is to put together. My husband and I both do construction and have remodeled our homes ourselves and this fan was by far the worst. It took us quite some time to put it together even reading the directions and figuring out the very awkward switch. It was a little more than I had anticipated. I choose not to deal with the remote yet. I'm still learning the wall switch. But it is a beautiful fan and I have received several compliments on it already.