Bare Escentuals released several “jewel-infused” kits around the same timeframe: September to November 2008. The kits were Bare Ruby (a Sephora exclusive), Bare Topaz (an Ulta exclusive), and Bare Crystals (all other channels, including Nordstrom’s and the BE webstore.) The price points were very similar, as were the palettes (more on those grumbles later); the individual kits had different face powders, lip products, and brush selections.

Photos that show how the product actually performs...! See how I create my swatches

The Bare Topaz kit included:

• Luminous Topaz eyeshadow — pale champagne sparkle
• Smoky Topaz eyeshadow — earthy chocolate sheen
• Lush Topaz eyeliner — intense, smoky forest green sheen
• Rosy Topaz blush — autumn rose
• Mineral Veil
• Tempest — blushwine rose
• Tapered Crease Brush with gold handle w/ inset fake topaz
• Precision Eyeliner Brush with gold handle w/ inset fake topaz
• Soft Focus Face Brush with gold handle w/ inset fake topaz

As usual with Bare Escentuals' kits, one of the brushes interested me and the others I could gladly have done without. The Soft Focus Face brush, which had also been in the Bare Crystals kit, was a welcome addition to my hoard of backups. It's extremely soft, very fluffy, and is excellent for light full-face applications.

I was not thrilled about getting more browns, but was looking forward to Lush Topaz - the green liner shadow. I was pleased with all three colors, but most with Luminous and Lush topaz. Smoky Topaz is a bit lackluster, and will probably be left neglected unless I make a point to use it.

The blush is a little bit too golden to make a good blush color. It's not as warm as Rose Diamond (from the Champagne Diamonds collection), but this color still works better on me as either a lip color or an eyeshadow.

The full-color buxoms are not my favorite. They're a bit too thick, and bit too pigmented for my preference. However, this is one of the few full-color buxoms I very much enjoy. It's a warmer shade, so it looks best applied either very lightly or muted. I've found that using this under or over a cool lip color (almost a lavender-mauve) balances out the gold tones and gives me a nicely wearable lip combination.

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or look at other entries tagged with Brand: Bare Escentuals BareMinerals, cruelty free, discontinued, kit, limited edition, released: 2008, season: Autumn, Ulta

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