Kress Glass Insert Coffee Table

This is a very cool piece of furniture and, in my opinion, absolutely worth buying. I was hunting for a new coffee table with a little more personality than the standard rectangle it was replacing and I fell in love with the funky angles and stylish glass insert. I knew it was going to be flatpack-style ("Ikea-style") furniture, but I was pleasantly surprised at how solid and well-balanced it is when assembled. It isn't obvious from the pictures, but EVERYTHING is anchored together in at least 3 places, usually with a combination of wooden pegs (secured with supplied wood glue) and screws. The load-bearing pieces are secured with allen (hexagonal) wood screws in multiple places, as well. The legs seem small and dainty but after assembling this, I'm not worried at all about collapse. I could probably dance on this thing (as long as I don't step on the glass!). Now, it's worth pointing out that this is a very labor-intensive piece to assemble. I'm an experienced assembler-slash-flatpack-junkie and this took me almost 2 hours to do with no interruptions. I can imagine this taking someone less-experienced anywhere from 3 to 6 hours (or longer!) to assemble. The instructions are thorough and you can tell that they really want you to feel like you can build this yourself -- which I know you can! The instructions (which are careful diagrams without words) come in a stapled packet of 8.5" x 11" paper and I strongly recommend that you carefully tear the "parts list" sheet from the packet and lay it next to the rest of the packet while you assemble and turn pages. Some of the screws look similar in the diagrams and having the list right in front of you will cut down immensely on the time you spend rooting for the right piece. The pilot holes in my table were all drilled properly and I didn't have any difficulty lining anything up or tightening any screws. You'll probably end the project thinking that your life will be complete if you never see another allen-head wood screw again, but the result is worth the elbow-grease expense. A couple of tips I gleaned from my experience: - Be VERY careful unpacking the box. The pieces are laminated wood and they seem to do a lot of damage to each other when they bump edges or slide around. They're durable when assembled, though. - Unpack everything and line it up so you can easily see the part-number stickers. Also, try to do this in a large, open room, preferably with a hard floor (kitchen, garage, etc.). Soft or squishy floors will ruin your angles and make the project much harder. - Use a manual Phillips-head screw driver, not an electric one. (It's the one that looks like a medical cross if you look down the tip. If you don't have one, get one! It's a vital tool for household projects.) - Guide all of the screws using your free hand. Sometimes they'll try to go in at a slight angle, which can be corrected if you catch it early. - If you find that you can't quite seat the glass once you've assembled the wooden parts, try my little trick. Seat the glass as closely as you can, and then lift the table FROM BELOW directly in the center of the "pocket" where the glass sits. Don't lift from the ends! Because the table is so heavy, it will bend ever so slightly and the glass should drop perfectly into place. Gently set it back down and your glass is secure! Please don't try this if your glass is too large by more than a hair or two. That means that something isn't in the right place and it will probably shatter! - THIS IS HEAVY. Don't injure your back! Ask someone to help you if you can't easily lift it. Good luck on your assembly and enjoy your table!

• How did the color on site compare with the actual product? Exact match (white version)
• Please tell us about the quality of the product. Very sturdy
• How accurate was the on site description of the product? Very accurate
• Would you recommend this to a friend? Yes