Thank you for your comment! I did consider a few other options: texturing the dowels with a die grinder or a chisel, using twigs instead, etc etc, but all things considered I was too intimidated by those options because I was concerned with craft issues. The overall form is a rectangle for a similar reason, but also just because it made the most sense within the context of my parent’s living room. Nothing in there is too intense and I didn’t want the whole room to be about the table they didn’t even pick. 
Thank you again!