Not as pictured
First of all, I haven't received the legs of the bench yet.  (I just now received the top, so I'm giving them some time, figuring they might be shipping separately.--But why?  Why would you ship them separately? That's so weird.)  So, this review is just for the top.<br /><br />And the top is... not what I expected.  The wood looks nothing like the picture (which I now think likely has some sort of photo filter applied to it).  It looks like cheap pine you can get from Home Depot.  The pieces seem solidly joined--so that's good.  But the finish is bad.  I can and have done a much better job finishing furniture than this.  I expect professional woodworkers to be a little more skilled than I am and to put forth a better product.  It's stained with a red-ish stain, but it doesn't even have a clear coat on it.  It certainly doesn't have a "walnut" finish, as the description claims.<br /><br />I'm gonna have to sand the whole thing down, restain and then seal it.<br /><br />And the cut of the wood lacks the rustic quality shown in the photos.  Like I said, it just looks like lumber from Home Depot.<br /><br />I'm not sure how much it would cost to just buy legs like these separately, but if it's less than $75 or so, I'd say I way overpaid for this.  And I got it on a significant sale.  If I had paid full price, I probably would try to return it.<br /><br />Pros:<br />Solid joinery<br />Nice, thick slab<br />Size is as ordered<br />The shipping on the top came significantly early<br /><br />Cons:<br />Bad finish<br />Legs missing or shipped separately<br />Not rustic--cheap-looking lumber<br />Off-gassing from finish<br />Just overall unimpressive
Rating: 3 stars