My house was built in the 20s, so there is very limited closet space and the places you can put shelves are awkwardly small. I thought this sort of shelf would be perfect in my bathroom if only a couple of inches too wide to let the door open all the way. When the time came to buy one, I was astounded at the price of them! Amazon has a few that are cheaper, but they catch you with $30 shipping costs. This particular shelf is eligible for Prime which I love to use. I'd searched and searched for one of a comparable price, but hadn't found anything else that didn't gut me on shipping or wasn't entirely too large. So, I broke down and bought this shelf last week.The shelf got here in record time (way to go UPS and Amazon!), and I really excited to get it put together and start organizing my new home. I pulled the shelf out of the box and it was remarkably dirty. I mean, every piece of this shelving unit was covered in saw dust and silty dirt. I pull out all the screws, the directions, and start dusting off all the pieces. The color is dark espresso supposedly, but I'd err on the side of caution and say that this is more black than anything else. In espresso, you can still see the brown. This is black until direct natural light hits it and then you can see the reddish undertones. Fortunately, this works in my bathroom, but for those of you looking for more brown than black, go elsewhere.Anyhow, so I start checking out all the pieces. It is fairly self-explanatory on how to put the whole thing together, but I notice that the edges are very rough/sharp. The wood is fairly cheap and dry, so I can see how it may not hold up well in humidity or be the best bet for a child's bedroom. There are scratches on it straight out of the box that are noticable since the stain is so dark. So, to Lowe's I will go for a stain pen to fix the scratches.There are a few positives to this particular shelf. Most of the holes on the shelf match up - some better than others - but for the most part the ease of putting it togeter is good. You will need a rubber mallet or a hammer to get the wooden pegs in the holes for the bottom shelf, but this isn't a big deal. All the pieces were included in the correct number, they include the necessary tool in case you don't have your own set of allen wrenches, and, while I had a little difficulty at the beginning, it was relatively easy to put together with only one person.Frankly, I normally would have returned this piece, but I cannot wait for shelving in my home any longer and I've been searching for ages so I realize this is about as good as it's going to get for the price. I'd have let a lot more of this stuff slide if it had been a $40-$50 shelf instead of a $70 shelf. I expect a little more for $70. Would I order from this company again? No, given that their prices stay the same.I am in a small space and needed something that would not be a nighttime tripping hazard. Because I couldn't come out away from the wall any further, I realized I needed to go up the wall instead. The reviews on this A-frame were pretty consistent, so I chose it. The price was right, and it arrived much sooner than I expected. The packaging was good, my shelf had no damage from shipping, and there was minimal waste when it was assembled. It is a bit darker than what is shown in the picture, but it is sturdy. I have DVDs on the top two shelves, photo albums on the third shelf, and my printer on the bottom shelf, and everything fits perfectly. It also dresses the room up some. When I was putting it together, I did use Elmer's wood glue on the dowels for a little extra hold. A rubber mallet for the caps would have been helpful, but since I didn't have one, I used a finish hammer and a towel, and the caps didn't have any marks. I also used glue on the caps. Also, it may seem when you're putting it together that the holes don't line up. I'm not sure why, but I was able to use a cordless drill with an Allen wrench attachment to screw everything to a point, but had to finish it off with the allen wrench provided, which was a little disappointing; however, I'd rather have it be tight at assembly than loose and have to worry about it falling apart later. I may buy another down the road if this one stays sturdy like I expect it will.Arrived one day after ordering and received prime shipping. Appreciate this from Amazon and the seller. Mine came well packaged and no flaws on the shelves or the frame. The finish is pretty and very dark, but not black, but that was the way it was described. And, it is real solid wood, very nice. I was a little worried that it might be too big for the space I had in mind for it. I have a VERY small living room. BUT, it is perfect and just right. I have pictures and my owl collection on it.As for putting it together, I had a little trouble, but I expected this to begin with. It's just me and I have arthritis in my hand and fingers, BUT, I'll bet it will not fall apart, very sturdy, if I do say so myself.Overall, very nice and great price. I have always had great service from Amazon. I try to do my research and I do read reviews, as they really help me in my choices. Why the 4 stars; I was not able to use the wood plugs. But the screws showing do not bother me. Could I have made the holes bigger, probably, but I did not have the time or the tools to do so and I did NOT want to ruin the very pretty finish on the unit.Product quality is very good and it is looking sturdy also. The only challenge which I had was about the instructions attached to it. Instructions was not clear and it took little more time putting it together. Also the screw which came with it took lot of time initially fixing it. But once fixed it looked awesome and value for money.Overall I like the shelf. My only dislike was the finish and by this I mean that there was rough spots that looks ashy/almost white. Its obvious it was the way it was manufactured (not sanded down good enough). So what I did was polish it with pledge w/orange oil and wiped off any excess. So far it looks normal now. With books and knick knacks the patches wont show but looking at it out the box I'm more than sure anyone would want to return it. That was my 1st reaction but I figured I should try to work with it first because the shelf is nice overall and sturdy enough for books, knick knacks and even small plants. I would suggest putting heavier items at the bottom and also make sure its on a level floor. Mine is on hardwood and there are some uneven spots so I moved it over until it was secure. I've attached of how it looks after polishing with pledge....forgot to take before photos. The color is dark and matches my other brown black furniture from Ikea perfectly. If the rough ashy patches come back after the wood absorbs the polish/oil I just might get matching color stain to even it out.I was able to assemble this in less than 15 minutes.I was pleasantly surprised by the sturdiness of this bookshelf. When purchasing wood furniture under a certain price, one often assumes that there is a trade off in the quality of the product; however, that is not the case with these shelves.The bookshelf was very easy to put together. It comes with only 7 pieces, and by myself, I was able to assemble the shelf in less than 30 minutes. Concerning the color of the shelves, they are a perfectly dark espresso, near black color. I actually wanted to purchase a black bookshelf but settled for this smaller, less expensive shelf in espresso, and I am very happy with my decision. Even under bright lights, the shelf still looks almost black.Upon assembly, the shelf was slightly wobbly, but that was due to the uneven wood floors in my old apartment, not due to any problem with the shelf. It's nothing that a small furniture pan under one of the legs won't fix. Uneven floor problems aside, the shelf is very sturdy. I put an 8lb Himalayan salt lamp on the second shelf from the bottom and it was held up with ease... there was no buckling of the shelf underneath the lamp. I plan to use the other shelves for little nick knacks and a books, and I have no doubt whatsoever that the shelf will be able to hold it all.I gave the product 4 stars for a few reasons:1) The quality of the wood stain. It is quite obvious that the stain was applied quickly and unevenly. The shelves look only partially finished in some spots. It is possible that the wood was not fully prepped when the stain was applied. It looks like what you would see if you tried to stain a piece of wood that was not evenly sanded prior to application. It's not bad enough for me to want to return the unit, but it is something that I will have to hide with some sort of furniture polish.2) There is a small dent in the middle of one of the side frames, likely to have occurred in shipping. It's about an inch long. Again, not a reason to return it as it is hardly noticeable from a distance, but it is visible nonetheless.Aside from a few flaws, I would still recommend this product for it's quality and price. I would happily purchase this item again.Love this. Going to put my Christmas village on it. Added 65 feet of LED lights secured with tiny Commando hooks.Very easy to build.This is a nice little piece, works perfectly for displaying knickknacks and photos. It's a great size, doesn't dominate the room but doesn't seem overly small either. I like that it's made of solid wood and not pressboard. It's not the sturdiest bookshelf ever and there are some rough edges on the shelves, but overall good quality for the price.It was a bit wider than I thought, even though I measured the space. Would have liked a raised ridge on the back of the shelves, but it does the job I needed it for.A good offering. Very practical with easy assembly. The quality is great. Removing some of the stickers was interesting on the immaculate wood.