Love this lamp. A GREAT look for the money. You CAN see the bulb through the shade when it's on, but that's not necessarily a bad thing. And based on light output, I think this makes a better mood or ambient light than a reading lamp.
Please note that the inside of the shade is a gold color, which warms up the color of the light... an advantage if you go fluorescent.
However, if you're going incandescent, this lamp does NOT take a Type B bulb as listed. It takes a regular Type A.