Why these two, and why a month each
Evora first, because it earns it. A bottle is $54.00, or $49.00 on a monthly subscription, and each one costs less again if you take two or three. Its page spells out the routine, down to the number of pumps. Evora marks it vegan and cruelty free, and shipping is free worldwide, however small the order. Its 4.9 average comes from a live review feed of 1,559, and anyone can scroll down to the one-star reviews. If price and clear instructions are what you shop on, Evora gives you both, and I would not argue with you.
For about five dollars more a bottle ($53.99 on subscription against Evora's $49.00), Lumié sells an oil made for skin after menopause, and it is open about that. It says what each ingredient it names is there to do. The hand-harvested Undaria seaweed is there for the moisture barrier, which Lumié says runs down after menopause. A blend of four oils (rice bran, babassu, açaí and passion fruit) carries the moisture. For firming, Lumié relies on white lupin, a plant extract the brand calls clinically studied and credits with visibly firmer skin and better elasticity. Its scent is faint, and Lumié says it fades once the oil sinks in. The refund lasts 60 days and needs one email with your order number. You do not have to prove you used it, and nobody asks whether the bottle is open. It prints no directions, so I had to work out how much to use on my own.
Evora got July and Lumié got August, one at a time, so I always knew which oil was doing what. A month shows you what an oil is like to live with, and for a firming oil it is only the first stretch. Both went on after my evening shower, over arms, legs, neck and chest, and I added nothing else to the routine. It was hot, sleeveless weather both months. The brands write for different women. Evora's copy talks about crepey, dry, mature skin and never mentions age or menopause. Lumié made the Queen Oil for skin after menopause, which is the skin I have.
Every number both brands print, side by side
These are each brand's own figures and claims, row by row.
| Item | Lumié Queen Oil | Evora Botanical Body Oil |
|---|---|---|
| Cost | $59.99 one-time, or $53.99 on subscription | Cheaper: $54.00, or $49.00 on subscription |
| The oil | Dry body oil in a clear glass bottle | Body oil in a frosted glass bottle |
| Who it is made for | Skin after menopause, and it says so outright | Crepey, saggy, dry or mature skin |
| Leads with | White lupin, hand-harvested Undaria seaweed, four oils | Wakame, Brazil nut, passionflower, rice bran, argan, vitamin E |
| Ingredients named | Six botanicals, each with a job | 16, printed in order |
| The scent | Faint, and fades once absorbed | Vanilla extract, with no unscented option |
| Dispenser | Pump | Pump |
| Marks and claims | Natural, dermatologist formulated | Natural, vegan, cruelty free, dermatologist tested |
| Average rating | 4.9 / 5 | 4.9 / 5 |
| Review count | 1,738 | 1,559 |
| Refund conditions | 60 days, opened or not | 90 days, if still sealed and unused |
A green cell is the better answer on its row, and there are four. Evora takes price, since it costs less as a single bottle and on subscription. The other three go to Lumié. It is made for skin after menopause, and Evora never mentions menopause at all. Its scent is light, and by the time I was dressed it had gone, which matters to me because I wear perfume most days. And its refund needs one email with your order number, opened bottle or not. Evora's 90 days cover bottles that are still sealed and unused. One plain row also leans Evora's way: the vegan and cruelty free labels.
What happens in the first minute on your arm
Every evening I came out of the shower, pumped some oil into my palm and paid attention to how long my arms stayed slick before a top could go on. Evora had July for this and Lumié had August, on the same arms in the same heat.
- The oil is golden and sits in clear glass under a white pump. One press covered a forearm with some to spare for the upper arm.
- Straight after the shower, on damp arms, it was gone within about a minute. Lumié's own figure is seconds, and a minute was quick enough for me.
- Once it had gone in, my arm just felt soft. I ran a finger down it and found no greasy film at all.
- There's a faint plant smell as it goes on, which Lumié calls natural and botanical. By the time I was dressed I couldn't find it.
- Lumié publishes no directions for use anywhere, so the first week was me working out how much to use and when, by trial and error.
- Its 1,738 reviews average 4.9 out of 5, the higher count of the two, and Lumié says 30,000+ women trust it.
- Evora comes in frosted glass, with a white pump tucked under a clear over-cap. The oil inside is golden too.
- Directions come printed: 2 to 3 pumps straight after a shower while the skin is still warm, then slow circular motions. I followed them all through July.
- It takes a fair bit of working in. I kept up the circles until my palms stopped gliding, which on my upper arms took a while.
- You smell the vanilla as soon as it leaves the pump, and in the July heat it grew stronger the warmer my skin got.
- Every bottle of Evora comes with the vanilla.
- Evora's 4.9 out of 5 comes from 1,559 reviews that sit on a live feed, and you can scroll down to the one-star reviews and read them for yourself.
On speed, the round goes to Lumié. One press per arm and about a minute later my arms were ready for a sleeveless top, and by then there was nothing left to smell. Evora was the nicer ritual. The vanilla and the slow circles its directions ask for turned July evenings into a small treat, and it gets the credit for printing directions I could follow from the first night.
What each formula is built to do
Both brands lead with seaweed. Lumié's is Undaria and Evora's is wakame, which is Undaria pinnatifida by its Latin name. What sets them apart is everything else in the bottle, and whose skin each was made for.
- Undaria seaweed, harvested by hand, is the first of three ingredients Lumié singles out. The brand credits it with vitamins, amino acids and antioxidants, and says it refills a moisture barrier that runs down after menopause.
- Next comes a blend of four oils (babassu, passion fruit, rice bran and açaí), which Lumié says gives deep, lasting moisture without grease.
- White lupin is the third. Lumié calls it clinically studied and credits it with firmer-looking skin and better elasticity.
- The badges say 100% Natural Ingredients, Dermatologist Formulated, Clean Beauty with no parabens, and Made for Menopausal Skin. That last badge is the one pointed at me.
- Lumié says women who use white lupin consistently report their arms, chest and thighs looking noticeably tighter. Those are the places I bought it for.
- By Lumié's account, every ingredient it names is pointed at dry, crepey skin after menopause.
- Evora singles out six ingredients and says what each one does. Wakame, it says, reaches further than a cream and brings structure back to skin it calls "thin and crepey." Brazil nut oil is for elasticity, and passionflower seed oil mends the barrier so moisture stays in.
- The other three, again in Evora's words: rice bran oil carries the actives deeper and absorbs in seconds, argan oil firms the skin and gives it glow, and the job of locking in the progress goes to vitamin E.
- Evora says every ingredient in the bottle is there to smooth, firm or rebuild crepey skin.
- Two of the 16 are tree-nut oils, sweet almond in 2nd place and Brazil nut in 7th, and I found no nut warning on the page.
- Its page says daily use shows a real change in 3 to 4 weeks. That is Evora's promise, and I have reported it as one.
- Its copy is written for crepey, saggy and dry skin, and for mature skin in general. It never once mentions menopause, the thing that changed my skin in the first place.
As a general body oil, Evora covers more ground. It gives six ingredients a job and suits someone who simply wants softer skin. Lumié is narrower. It is aimed at the skin I have, about ten years past menopause, with seaweed it says restores the barrier and white lupin it says firms. Both oils left my skin softer, and that much I can vouch for. Firming I have left unscored for both.
The one you can put on and still leave on time
An oil that keeps you waiting in a towel is the one you skip when you're running late, however nice it is. So next to the feel I wrote down the dull things: how much each bottle wanted, how long before clothes could go on, whether I could see a refill coming, and how the scent got on with my perfume the next morning.
- One press per limb covered me once I'd found the right amount, and I never had to go back to the pump for more.
- With clear glass I could see at a glance how much was left and when the next bottle would be due.
- From the first press to a sleeveless top took me a couple of minutes, and that was with my neck and chest done as well.
- Lumié's faint scent was gone before I dressed. By the next morning there was nothing on my skin to argue with my perfume.
- Speed is a big part of why this is the bottle I reordered in September. On a busy evening I never once thought about skipping it.
- Evora's directions say where it goes as well as how much: 2 to 3 pumps for arms, chest and hands, with thighs and stomach as extras. Having it written down meant I never had to guess in July.
- The frosted glass is pretty, and I had to hold it to the light to see how much was left.
- All that massaging takes a few minutes. I gave it a few more before any clothes went near my arms.
- The vanilla was still on my skin the next morning, and on hot mornings it sat under my perfume and muddled it.
- On evenings with nowhere to be, I liked the slow routine and never minded the wait.
Lumié takes this round. With one press per limb I was dressed in a couple of minutes, and nothing on my skin the next morning got in the way of my perfume. Evora alone prints directions, and I liked being told. The routine they describe asks for a few minutes of slow circles and a few more before clothes, and on the hottest days the vanilla was still with me at breakfast. On the evenings I was in a hurry, that is the bottle I would have skipped.
What ends up on your sleeves and your sheets
I checked my sleeves, collars and pillowcases through both months, and the laundry basket kept score.
- In the first week, with no directions to go on, I used too much and left an oily mark on a linen shirt. I cut back to one press per limb and it never happened again.
- It sank in fastest on damp skin, fresh out of the shower. I found that out for myself, as Lumié gives no advice on timing.
- At one press per limb nothing slick stayed on the surface, and I could button a shirt straight over it.
- My sheets stayed clean all through August, and I did check, because my neck and chest were oiled every night before bed.
- Hours afterwards my shins, the driest skin I have, still felt soft to the touch, long after I'd stopped thinking about the oil.
- Its faint scent was gone before I dressed, so nothing hung about in the fabric. My collars smelled of the wash and nothing else.
- Evora tells you to massage it in until it's absorbed, and when I'd done that a light film was left on the skin.
- Rough elbows are the one place I'll happily take a film. In July mine stayed soft from one evening to the next.
- Give it a few minutes before clothes. The directions put getting dressed last, after the massaging, and they're right to.
- When I got impatient and dressed too soon, a cotton top came away with an oily mark across the shoulder.
- The vanilla comes to bed with you. It carried into my sheets, which I enjoyed at night, and it was still there when I changed the bed.
- Evora sells no version without the vanilla, so the scent comes with the film.
This one goes to Lumié. After one heavy-handed week and a marked linen shirt, it left nothing on my sleeves or my sheets, and nothing I could smell on either. Evora's film has its uses. On rough elbows and other very dry spots it earns its place, and if your skin runs drier than mine you may want exactly that. The price is a few minutes of waiting before you dress, or a mark on cotton if you rush it. The vanilla follows you into bed as well, which I happen to like. For anyone who oils up and gets dressed straight after, Lumié is the easier one to live with.
How much each brand tells you about what is inside
Both brands sell you on seaweed first, so the next thing I wanted to know was what else would be going on my arms, legs, neck and chest every evening for a month. That depends on how much each brand tells you. Evora lists its 16 ingredients in order and prints directions. Lumié names six botanicals under three headline ingredients and says what each one does. This round goes to Evora, mostly on the directions and the marks.
- Lumié's ingredients section has three cards, each with a name, a badge and a line on what it does: Undaria seaweed, the four-oil blend and white lupin.
- The blend card names all four of its oils, rice bran, babassu, passion fruit and açaí, which brings the named botanicals to six.
- White lupin is the third headline ingredient, and the one Lumié calls clinically studied. It names no study, so I am repeating the brand's two words and leaving it there.
- The badges say Dermatologist Formulated, No Parabens, 100% Natural Ingredients and Made for Menopausal Skin. I looked for the dermatologist's name. Lumié does not give one.
- Lumié prints no percentages and no directions for use, so how much to use is yours to work out. If you react to particular oils, the six botanicals it names are the ones to check.
- Its 4.9 comes from 1,738 reviews, the higher count of the two, and Lumié counts 30,000+ women among its customers. There is no public feed behind the 1,738 for you to read through.
- All 16 ingredients are printed in order, from caprylic/capric triglyceride down to Vanilla planifolia fruit extract, and the list appears twice on the page.
- Evora's 4.9 rests on 1,559 reviews in a live feed. Scroll far enough and you reach the one-star reviews, left up for anyone to read.
- Evora is marked vegan and cruelty free, as well as 100% natural. Lumié carries neither of those first two marks.
- Evora prints directions too: 2 to 3 pumps after a shower while the skin is still warm, worked in with slow circles.
- Reading Evora's list is how you find its two tree-nut oils, sweet almond at number 2 and Brazil nut at number 7. Evora prints no allergy warning, and its FAQ tells anyone with a sensitivity to check the list and ask a dermatologist.
- The same list puts Undaria pinnatifida, the wakame Evora sells you on, 12th of 16, with vitamin C at 14th. Evora gives no percentages for any of them.
Evora wins this round by a distance. Its 16 ingredients are in print, in order, and six come with a stated purpose. The directions are printed. It is marked vegan and cruelty free, and the one-star reviews stay up on a live feed. Lumié explains its six botanicals clearly, gives no directions and names no dermatologist. If nuts are a problem for you, read Evora's list before you order: it turns up the sweet almond and Brazil nut oils.
Getting your money back, and the clause that decides it
The only way to judge a body oil is to use it every evening for weeks. So the refund worth having is one you can still claim once the bottle is open and half gone. Both brands promise your money back. I read the written policy behind each promise, and one clause in Evora's settles this round.
- Claiming takes one email to info@lumieparis.com with your order number in it. You do not have to give a reason or prove you used the oil.
- Send it within 60 days of receiving the order. The policy expects you to have tried the oil, and it promises the full purchase price back within a few business days.
- Free US shipping starts at $70, and one bottle at $59.99 comes in just under that line.
- Lumié says fewer than 1% of its customers ever claim it. I never needed to.
- Evora advertises 90 days: try it risk free, no questions asked. Its FAQ says to use the oil every day for the full period.
- Its written refund policy takes back only a bottle that is unopened, unused and still sealed in its original packaging.
- Evora treats any opened package as worn and used and turns it down on hygiene grounds. You must email for approval before you send anything.
- You pay the return shipping. Anyone who bought to use it once and send it back is refused.
Lumié wins this round, clearly. Evora gives you 90 days to Lumié's 60. Its FAQ asks for daily use across the whole period, and its written policy accepts only a sealed, unused bottle. I read both twice and could not see how a bottle used every day, as the FAQ asks, could still qualify. A return would also need an approval email and return shipping out of your own pocket. Lumié asks for one email with the order number, bottle open or not. I never had to send it, and I reordered in September.
What ten bottles of each one cost
When I reordered Lumié in September, I did the sum I should have done in July: ten bottles of each on subscription. Lumié at $53.99 a bottle comes to $539.90. Evora at $49.00 comes to $490.00. Evora is $49.90 cheaper over the ten, and it costs less per bottle at every quantity either brand sells.
Evora wins on money, and the sums leave nothing to argue about. Ten bottles on subscription cost $490.00 against $539.90 for Lumié, and Evora rewards a bigger order on top. On subscription, two bottles a month work out at $39 each and three every two months at $34 each. Buying once, two come to $44.00 a bottle and three to $39.67. Lumié charges about $54 a bottle on subscription and $59.99 one-time, whether you order one bottle or four. If the lowest price is your priority, buy Evora and you will have a good oil. I paid the extra for Lumié. It is made for skin after menopause, which is the skin I have, and its faint scent is gone by the time I dress, so nothing on my arms argues with my perfume or ends up on a collar. Had it not suited me, one email would have gotten my money back with the bottle open. If that sounds like you, I would spend the $49.90.
What your money buys, bottle by bottle
Evora is the cheaper bottle at every size, so there is no suspense on price. Each tick is one plain thing your money gets you.
- ✓ $59.99 for a single bottle, or $53.99 when you subscribe and save 10%
- ✓ Bought once, two bottles are $119.99, three $179.99 and four $239.99, the same $59.99 each
- ✓ Shipping is free inside the US once an order reaches $70, which every two-bottle order does
- ✓ 60 days from delivery to claim a full refund, with the bottle opened or still sealed
- ✓ You claim it with one email and your order number, and Lumié never asks you to prove you used it
- ✓ Hand-harvested Undaria seaweed, aimed at a moisture barrier Lumié says wears thin after menopause
- ✓ Four oils blended together, babassu, rice bran, passion fruit and açaí, which Lumié says give deep, lasting moisture
- ✓ A golden oil that sank into my damp arms in about a minute and left them with no film
- ✓ White lupin, a plant extract Lumié calls clinically studied and credits with firmer-looking skin and better elasticity
- ✓ A light botanical scent that Lumié says fades to a soft, skin-like warmth once it sinks in
- ✓ Badges reading Made for Menopausal Skin, Dermatologist Formulated, 100% Natural Ingredients and No Parabens, and a 4.9 average from 1,738 reviews
- ✓ $54.00 for a single bottle, or $49.00 a bottle when it ships monthly on subscription
- ✓ Bought once, two bottles are $88.00, which is $44.00 each, and three are $119.00, or $39.67 each
- ✓ On subscription, two bottles are $78.00 a month ($39.00 each) and three are $102.00 every two months ($34.00 each)
- ✓ Its 16 ingredients printed in order, opening with caprylic/capric triglyceride, then sweet almond and jojoba seed oils
- ✓ Wakame (Undaria pinnatifida), which Evora says restores structure to thin and crepey skin, with rice bran oil to carry it deeper
- ✓ Evora gives three more oils a job: passionflower seed keeps moisture in, Brazil nut rebuilds elasticity, argan adds firmness and glow
- ✓ Vegan and cruelty free marks, plus claims of 100% natural, paraben free and sulfate free
- ✓ Free worldwide shipping on any order, sent out in 1 to 2 working days and delivered in 4 to 7
- ✓ 1,559 reviews averaging 4.9 on a live feed, where the one-star ones can be read
- ✓ Evora prints how to use it: 2 to 3 pumps after a shower on warm skin, rubbed in with slow circles, then dress
- ✓ A vanilla scent from Vanilla planifolia fruit extract, last on the list, in a frosted glass bottle with a white pump
On price alone, Evora wins easily. It gets cheaper per bottle the more you buy, and Lumié stays at $59.99 a bottle one-time whether you order one or four, so the gap grows with every bottle. A single Lumié bottle also sits under the $70 free-shipping line, where Evora ships free anywhere on any order. Lumié publishes no directions and makes no claim to be vegan or cruelty free. Evora has two catches. The vanilla comes in every bottle, since there is no version without it, and its written refund policy takes back only a sealed, unused bottle, sent back at your own cost. Lumié asks for one email and an order number within 60 days and does not mind an open bottle. So the extra money pays for an oil made for skin after menopause, with white lupin in it and a faint scent that is gone before my perfume goes on. At 61, about ten years past menopause, I thought that was worth it, and I reordered in September. If you want to pay less, or you love vanilla, Evora is a good buy, and I would not talk you out of it.