Watts New

Benjamin French lights up Shockoe Bottom

by

Historic lighting fixtures in the Richmond area and beyond have burned a lot brighter since 1998, when Ken Roeper began cleaning and restoring vintage and historic fixtures through his business, Crystal Details. He’s worked on fixtures everywhere from the Virginia Executive Mansion and the state capitol building to Washington’s Willard hotel and the U.S. Capitol. Now he and his wife, Katie, have tuned into rising environmental awareness and the growing demand for upcycled or recycled lighting fixtures with the opening of the Benjamin French shop on Main Street in Shockoe Bottom.

With his new lighting store, Ken has taken his passion for lighting restoration to the next level. The couple, collectors who furnished their Fan District home with vintage finds, have amassed a huge inventory of antique and historic pendant lights, chandeliers, floor lamps, wall sconces, and table lamps to stock the store, including a striking green slag-glass fixture and a pierced brass Moroccan floor lamp. The store also sells a collection of exclusive custom-designed lampshades.

“If someone has something unique in mind, we can create it from the fixtures we have in stock,” Katie says. All of Benjamin French’s lamps, sconces and fixtures can be customized, and the choices for customization are considerable. Pendant lights, for example, can be created entirely from scratch, from the choice of globe to the color of the wrapped wiring, the style of the metal canopy and the height of the fixture.  

Through the years, Ken has become enamored with crystal lighting and its history. “I love what I do,” he says, “and enjoy building and restoring them; they’re pieces of art.” He uses contemporary materials that mirror the look of the original period, including cloth-cased wire, which can be color-matched to the fixture, lamp or room. He’ll also rewire, rebuild or refurbish customers’ own pieces.

Benjamin French is open Monday to Wednesday by appointment and Thursday to Saturday 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. 2104 E. Main St. 804-997-7979 or benjaminfrench.com.