These shelves look great, are sturdy and stable without anchoring to the wall. However, if there are kids or pets in the home, anchoring to the wall is a must...and the anchoring system is top-notch.2 small nits to pick: 1) it would be helpful if the framing pieces were labeled to show top and front, left and right for each piece. Made several mistakes during assembly that wasted time. and 2) some of the joints on the sections of framing do not meet up flush. This is not so much a problem with the black framing but I imagine it would be quite noticeable with th gold/brass frames.Overall though...a strong buy recommendation.
Rating: [5 of 5 Stars!]