Factory Tours
Gilded Nights
In a creativity-filled apartment in Hell’s Kitchen, Natalie Umanzor is building a luxury wellness brand: Gilded Nights. Her company, which began as a pandemic-era passion project, now thrives at artisan markets across the city—and is steadily growing a devoted customer base that values beauty, sustainability, and a bit of mystery.
“I accidentally founded my business,” Natalie says with a laugh. Like many pandemic-born entrepreneurs, she started Gilded Nights while looking for an outlet during lockdown. After her husband asked her to cool it on baking (“We were getting too fluffy”), she dove headfirst into YouTube soap-making videos. “I wanted to create a safe space in my house—soap-making became my escapism.”
What began as hobbyist experimentation quickly escalated. With more soaps than she could gift to friends and neighbors, and an outpouring of encouragement to start selling, Natalie made the leap. When she was laid off from her job, her husband nudged her further: “You love farmers markets and fairs—why not try turning this into a business?” She took the plunge and hasn’t looked back. “I had set a sales goal for myself for what I thought I was gonna do for the year,” she says. “I did that in my first month.”
Natalie is entirely self-taught, and her dedication to mastering her craft is evident in every product she offers—hand-poured candles, sea salt soaps, body mists, and room sprays—all created in the shared space of her Manhattan apartment. She spent “hundreds of hours” studying online forums and videos to perfect her methods, learning through trial, error, and determination. “I tried 10 or so soap recipes before I found one I was really happy with,” she says.
Her candles are made with coconut apricot wax, a silky, clean-burning alternative to soy that leaves behind a smooth, elegant finish even after burning. Her soaps—like her popular activated charcoal and sea salt bar—are vegan, palm-free, and crafted with sustainably sourced ingredients, including sunflower oil from the Hudson Valley.
But Natalie’s brand isn’t just about ingredients—it’s about atmosphere. “Everyone’s into clean, minimal aesthetics right now,” she explains. “But I wanted something moodier. A little darker. Still elegant and upscale, but different.”
The visual identity of Gilded Nights leans into this moody Art Deco vibe—rich, sensual, and a touch glamorous. And as the brand evolves, Natalie is exploring ways to expand her visual storytelling. Her latest endeavor? Laser-engraving candle lids with affirmations tied to each scent. “I want each candle to carry a feeling,” she says. “A message you hold onto when you light it.” If you want to see one of the affirmations, we suggest snagging one of Natalie’s candles on her website!
Natalie is intentional about her place in a broader movement to bring greater visibility to small-scale queer and Latin-owned brands in the beauty and wellness industry. “You don’t really see Latin-owned candle companies on the shelves at Sephora. Or queer-owned ones. That’s something I want to change.”
While the market may be crowded, Natalie has carved out a niche with her authentic voice, distinctive aesthetic, and commitment to quality. “People want to shop smaller now,” she notes. “They want to know how things are made—and who’s making them.” She shares behind-the-scenes videos of her production process on YouTube and Instagram, bringing her customers into her home studio and demystifying the labor behind each batch.
Natalie is part of a new wave of NYC-based manufacturers reshaping public perceptions of what manufacturing looks like. “People aren’t thinking of small makers making from their homes when they hear the word ‘manufacturing.’ Online, I invite people into the process and show them behind the scenes, bringing them into my home studio,” she says. “Let me show you a day in the life. Let me show you what it means to make an order from start to finish. I think that goes a long way into changing perceptions of what manufacturing actually is.”
Though Natalie’s operation is currently based in her one-bedroom apartment, her ambitions stretch far beyond it. She’s working toward wholesale distribution, with hopes to one day have her products carried by major retailers like Nordstrom or Urban Outfitters. To get there, she’s refining her packaging, investing in professional printing, and preparing for trade shows like NY NOW and Faire’s virtual market.
Still, running a small manufacturing business from a Manhattan apartment comes with challenges. Storage is a constant issue, and transporting goods to markets without a car requires regular rideshares and strategic packing. “My new spiel is, ‘It’s just me—but I have a lot of stuff!’” she jokes.
Despite these limitations, Natalie is clear about why she’s staying put. “The maker community in New York is incredible. Between organizations like Made in NYC and the New York Handmade Collective, I’ve found mentorship, opportunities, and resources I wouldn’t have access to anywhere else.”
As she scales up, Natalie remains grounded in what first drew her to making: the joy of crafting something by hand, of creating a space—both physical and emotional—that feels warm, safe, and unapologetically hers.
“I don’t think I’ll ever open a storefront,” she says. “But having my products on shelves in stores across the country? That’s the dream.”
Until then, you can find Natalie at weekend markets across NYC, selling Gilded Nights products with a signature smile and a table full of perfectly moody, meticulously crafted goods.