Having an attractive, bright smile can make a huge difference in how you look and feel. An aesthetically pleasing smile projects confidence, optimism, and approachability. While some are naturally blessed with picture-perfect smiles, there are many ways to improve the appearance of your smile through cosmetic dentistry procedures and home care. Follow these tips to achieve a smile makeover.
Evaluate Your Smile
The first step is to objectively evaluate what you like and dislike about your smile. Look at photos of yourself smiling and take note of elements you want to enhance. Common smile flaws include:
- Discolored or stained teeth
- Chipped or cracked teeth
- Gaps between teeth (spaces)
- Crooked or crowded teeth
- Uneven gumlines
- Excess gum tissue in the smile line
- Missing teeth
Identifying the specific issues with your smile will allow you to find targeted solutions.
Professional Teeth Whitening
Discolored or stained teeth are one of the biggest detractors from an attractive smile. Whether your teeth are naturally yellowish or have picked up stains over time from foods, drinks, or smoking, a professional teeth whitening treatment can visibly brighten your smile by several shades. In-office procedures performed by your dentist are faster and more dramatic, while take-home whitening kits from your dentist are more gradual but equally effective over time. Teeth whitening produces one of the most instant smile makeover effects.
Dental Bonding
For minor tooth flaws like chips, cracks, gaps, or uneven surfaces, dental bonding provides a quick and easy fix. Your dentist applies a putty-like resin material to the tooth surface and sculpts it into the desired shape before hardening it with a curing light. Bonding blends seamlessly with your natural teeth and can drastically improve the look of a chipped, cracked, or uneven smile.
Veneers
Dental veneers are thin shells of porcelain or resin that are custom-made to cover the front surface of teeth. They are an excellent option for major tooth flaws that bonding cannot fix, such as severely discolored teeth, badly chipped teeth, or noticeable gaps. The dentist bonds the veneer shells onto the front of the teeth to create completely smooth, bright white, perfectly shaped teeth. Veneers provide one of the most dramatic smile transformations.
Gum Sculpting
An uneven gumline where the gums are too gummy or too receded can negatively impact the aesthetics of your smile. Gum sculpting is a procedure performed by a periodontist to reshape the gum tissue for a more balanced, symmetrical look. There are two main techniques:
- Subtractive surgery – Excess gum tissue is removed and reshaped to reduce gumminess.
- Additive surgery – Grafts are placed in areas with receded gums to increase gum coverage.
Sculpting fixes uneven gum proportions for a smile with properly framed and aligned teeth.
Orthodontic Alignment
Crooked, crowded, or widely gapped teeth can compromise the attractiveness of your smile. Orthodontic treatments like braces or clear aligners straighten the teeth and guide them into a more orderly arrangement. Aligned, properly positioned teeth create a smile that looks polished and put together.
Dental Implants
Missing teeth disrupt the symmetry and appearance of your smile. Dental implants involve surgically placing a titanium screw into the jawbone that fuses to the bone and acts as an artificial root. A visible crown is attached to the implant post and fills in the missing tooth space with a natural-looking prosthetic tooth. Implants restore fullness to your smile.
Consult an aesthetic dentist to develop a tailored treatment plan for enhancing your specific smile flaws.
