Maybe your parents provided a loving, nurturing environment, but simply couldn’t afford expensive orthodontics when you were young. Now that you are older, you know what a determent misshapen teeth and an imperfect smile can bring to your career, your love life, even your self-esteem. Why let your own smile hold you back from your dreams of a fulfilling career, a loving partner, or that outgoing confidence you’ve always wanted?

Perfect smiles aren’t just for move stars anymore. Smile makeovers have now become affordable, accessible to anyone who wants good looking teeth, a photo-perfect smile. Smiles can be sculpted and enhanced, made to look beautiful with a shining face worthy of any movie star.

With your smile in the hands of the right cosmetic dentist, your life can completely change. Go from being lost in a crowd to becoming noticed and appreciated. Become that person who always gets asked out, who can always land an important sail or make strides in any profession. Make lasting impressions in your career; meet that person you’ve always dreamed about.

A new smile is like a princess kissing a frog; it brings out your prince charming. Become beautiful and attractive, healthy and invigorating. Colored teeth can sparkle through professional teeth whitening procedures, whitened with porcelain veneers to bring back that health and shine to your smile. Tooth gaps can be closed, sharpening and shaping your smile. Crooked teeth can be straightened, enhancing the curve of your smile for a beautiful appearance. Gummy smiles can become healthy again with gingival contouring and porcelain laminates.

Cosmetic dentistry can add years of youth to your face. Wine stained or yellow teeth exaggerate the age your smile, leaving a disconcerting impression of smudged teeth, dirty with years of misuse. Through a vigorous cleaning program, teeth can become shiny, healthy and beautiful again. Smile enhancement brings out a healthy gleam throughout your whole face, making it young and happy again.

Recent technological developments in the industry make an investment in an award winning smile lasting and permanent. New improvements in the industry have made enhanced smiles more durable and predictable, making these enhancements lasting and fulfilling for a lifetime to come.

There’s no need to be held back in your career or your personal life with a misshapen smile. Cosmetic dentistry enhances your personal appearance, giving you that smile you’ve always wanted. Think about the confidence you’ll have when you finally feel great and actually look forward to photographs for the first time in your life. With the right smile enhancement program, you’ll feel completely new. Your career will benefit and your social life will improve when you finally have that attractive smile you’ve always wanted.

Face the world. But face it with a beautiful smile.

There are two types of tooth stains: extrinsic and intrinsic. Extrinsic stains are stains on the surface of the tooth. These stains are caused by exposure to wear and tear and certain foods and beverages. Minor extrinsic stains can be removed through brushing regularly. Major stains may need whitening. Some penetrate through to the dentin. Intrinsic stains form on the tooth’s interior through trauma or aging. Deep intrinsic stains can be managed through bleaching or an extensive whitening treatment. Many common reasons for stains on teeth are aging, the natural color of our teeth, eating habits, smoking, grinding, or trauma.

Solutions to deal with this problem involve some form of teeth whitening. There are a variety of options to choose from. They fall into two categories: one called, aptly named, “whitening”, and the other called “bleaching”. Bleaching involves, obviously, products containing some form of bleach – commonly hydrogen peroxide.

There are three teeth whitening options currently available for the general public:
In-office whitening offers the fastest results. The gums are protected with a paint-on rubber dam. A dentist or trained technician applies a highly concentrated peroxide gel to the teeth. This gel remains on the teeth, typically, for 15-20 minute sessions, adding up to an hour. If a patient’s teeth are particularly badly stained, they may be advised to return for another treatment, or to apply a take-home whitening system to their teeth.

Professional take-home whitening kits, such as the ones offered in the previous scenario, employ lower-concentration gels that are applied through a tray resembling a mouth guard. Depending on the concentration, the gel is then left on the teeth anywhere from an hour to overnight. These systems are generally considered to be the most effective long-term solutions.

Over-the-counter whitening kits are the most convenient, however, they can be rather limiting. Teeth whitening gel is applied to the teeth – in some cases, just the front teeth – using trays, strips, or paint-on applicators, rather than custom trays designed to fit your teeth. They are the cheapest option for teeth whitening, however they can take the longest to produce results.

Bleaching can also be administered either in-office or at home. In-office bleaching employs hydrogen peroxide of various concentrations, while at-home bleaching solutions use carbamide peroxide, which is a weaker application. These are powerful teeth whitening solutions.

There are a few risks involved with teeth whitening, including increased sensitivity and gum irritation, both of which are generally temporary. However, if your teeth are bleached and you have some form of tooth restoration, such as crowns or veneers, they retain their original color while the teeth around it are whitened. This is commonly referred to as “Technicolor teeth”.

Teeth whitening and bleaching are great ways to improve the look of your smile. When properly done, the process yields a natural, whiter smile that you can be proud of.

The first step is an oral health evaluation. In order to cosmetically alter your teeth, your overall oral health must be fairly good. If you have gum disease or a misaligned bite (commonly referred to as malocclusion), then you may need even more extensive restorative treatment – this is known as a full mouth reconstruction. This is a procedure that is more elaborate, but also provides positive results.

If you pass your oral health evaluation, then you must decide on your aesthetic goals with the help of a cosmetic dentist. A proper smile makeover considers your full facial appearance, including skin tone, hair color, and lips. Taking these factors into consideration, it is then possible for you and the dentist to establish a customized smile for yourself. The dentist may use characterization techniques to categorize your teeth and the smile you are looking for. Finding the appropriate masculine or feminine “look” for your smile is a crucial step in deciding how to proceed. Achieving the proper look can include:

1.    Tooth alignment, which can fix gaps in your teeth, crooked teeth, or overlapping teeth. This can be combined with veneers for an optimal look.

2.    Tooth coloring that can be customized to match the rest of your face. This process can include replacing silver or other noticeable fillings with composite materials and whitening stained teeth.

3.    Tooth replacement for missing teeth. Depending on the severity of the gaps, bridges or partial dentures can be used to complete your set.

4.    Tooth contouring, which will even out the shape of uneven teeth.

5.    Full facial repair that involves rejuvenating an aging or misshapen face through orthodontic work or oral maxillofacial surgery.

A good cosmetic dentist will show you before-and-after photographs of other patients who have gone through similar procedures, as well as use temporary bonding and digital imaging software to give you accurate previews of how your new smile will look on your face.

After the procedure, your dentist will want to talk about maintenance with you. As with any procedure, the life of the improvements are only as good as the care and maintenance you provide for it. Your dentist can consult with you on how long your whitening will last (typically the procedure needs to be repeated to maintain brightness), or when to decide that a veneer or bonding needs to be replaced. Just like your regular teeth, your smile makeover can be worn down over time, and it is important to follow the dentist’s instructions to maximize the potential of a long life for your new smile.

Technology is advancing constantly in the cosmetic dental field. New procedures and equipment designed to whiten and straighten your teeth have become available. These procedures are efficient and, most importantly, much more cost-effective than they were in the past.

The first is touch-ups. Touching up your teeth involves improving the yellow and brownish stains on your teeth, creating a whiter, brighter smile. This can also provide evening out your gum line and the contours of your teeth as well. With some local anesthetic and a single office visit, your gum line can be made symmetrical and beautiful, adding to the overall healthy look and attractiveness of your teeth.

Another related procedure is teeth whitening. Generally, it is one of the most affordable cosmetic dentistry procedures available to the general public. In-office visits can be effective, but there are also home solutions that can improve the appearance without breaking the bank.
Improving your smile and the overall look of your teeth is important in building your self-confidence and recognizing your beauty. Fortunately, there are many affordable cosmetic dentistry options available today for you to consider.

First, the research: go to the office of a cosmetic dentist you are considering. Grab whatever materials and brochures that may be available. You are looking for pictures and testimonials from people who have had these procedures done at this dentist’s office. Look around the waiting room: are there a lot of people? Maybe even ask a few people in the waiting room who have had work done by this dentist. Then, go home and check the dentist’s name on the internet. There may be more information, and you might find some reviews and opinions from people who have had work done. Word-of-mouth and other people’s opinions are very important in selecting the best cosmetic dentist.

Then, follow your gut. Schedule a consultation with the dentist you are considering. Ask a lot of questions and gauge his or her answers. See if they have any more photographic examples of work they’ve done. If you feel good about it, then take it the next step. If, for any reason, something doesn’t feel right about it, walk away.

Doing this seems like a lot of work and hassle, but you need to be able to trust your dentist. Finding the best cosmetic dentist is important because it is a very serious procedure.

Cosmetic dentistry is a blend of both science, employing new medical technologies, and art, attempting to return beauty to a person’s smile.

A cosmetic dentist is able to address many various aesthetic needs of a patient, employing safe and effective procedures:

• Dental Veneers – Veneers are a form of tooth repair. Bonding a veneer to a tooth can improve its color as well as fill in chips or cracks. Very worn teeth are treated with veneers, as well as severely discolored teeth that teeth whitening has been ineffective in treating.

• Teeth Whitening – By and large the most common procedure employed by cosmetic dentists, teeth whitening can repair discolorations of teeth due to poor oral hygiene, food, drink, or smoking-related stains. While bleaching your teeth is something handled by a professional, many home teeth whitening products are currently on the market as well.

• Dental Fillings – As mentioned above, dental fillings fall into the category of cosmetic dentistry when a porcelain tooth or one made of composite materials is used to create the appearance of a full tooth.

• Dental Implants – When a tooth is lost, it is possible to have a prosthetic tooth implanted to compensate and fill out the smile. This can result in an improved, more youthful appearance – combating the collapse of the face as a result of the missing teeth.

• Bonding – Using a composite material, the surface of a chipped or cracked tooth is remolded to simulate the proper shape of the tooth.

In the past, severely damaged teeth were pulled and replaced with a set of dentures. While this is still an option for those with extensive damage, new technologies are employed today to broaden the options available to the general public – especially those with only one or two damaged teeth. It is now possible to repair a smile that has been ruined by damaged teeth, and return a beautiful, white, youthful smile to someone looking to enhance their appearance.

The first step in the process is to have a consultation with a reputable cosmetic dentist. He or she will be able to give you all the details necessary for you to make a decision, including the operation itself, how often visits will need to be repeated, the cost, and what results to expect. The dentist will also be able to inform you on how to make to most out of the longevity of the procedure, and the care of your new smile.

No dental work lasts forever. While they can have long-term effects, eventually more work will probably have to be done, at least to maintain the appearance that the cosmetic dental makeover gave you. Some are optional, others are necessary.

For example, teeth whitening is a very common form of procedure. Over time, the whitening fades. But because the whitening is not something that makes permanent changes to the tooth structure, the choice to go through the procedure again is completely optional. Neither choice will cause damage to your teeth – at least from a health standpoint.

However, if you choose to have porcelain veneers or crowns placed, you will always need the veneer or crown on that particular tooth. So if the crown deteriorates, or the veneer breaks off or cracks, you will need to have it replaced with another. Each situation is different, so talk to your dentist about this.

When you approach a dentist about a cosmetic dental makeover, ask questions. Make sure that you are aware of the expected longevity of the makeover, and what options you have to deal with it when it begins to fade or deteriorate.

First, the consultation. This is when you and the dentist sit down and discuss what you are looking for and what procedure(s) will be appropriate for you. These are not “one size fits all” operations: they need to be customized to fit your mouth, your teeth structure, and your needs. This will also include a look at your medical history to see what kinds of protective measures need to be taken.

Photographs and x-rays of your teeth are next to get a comprehensive look at your current situation. Looking at those, you and the dentist will discuss what changes you are looking for in your dental makeover. Then he will do a comprehensive examination of your teeth and mouth, and depending on the nature of the procedure, he may take a mold of your teeth. You may then be able to look at what your teeth will look like after the makeover, via temporary mouth insertion or computer digital imaging.

It may take some time for the dentist to put together the necessary strategies for your dental makeover. However, once he is ready, you can walk into the procedure with confidence that you will be walking out with a bigger, better smile on your face.

First, the planning: you and your dentist need to make an appointment to sit down and discuss the goals that you are looking to achieve. Your dentist will then examine your teeth and mouth to make sure that dental veneers are the appropriate solution for you. This is also the time to ask plenty of questions regarding the procedure itself and what to expect. This appointment can be considered even more important than the actual operation, as this is where the decisions are made.

Your tooth will be prepared by the dentist, who will take off a layer of enamel from the tooth – the layer that will be replaced by the dental veneers. Anesthetic will be applied prior to this procedure, usually just a local anesthetic. A model of the tooth will then be made, which will be sent to a laboratory for veneer construction. It usually takes one to two weeks for this process to be completed. In the meantime, temporary veneers can be placed if necessary.

The tooth will be cleaned and polished prior to bonding. After the bonding is set, you are done! The dentist will schedule an appointment to follow-up on the teeth and make sure that the gums are reacting appropriately to the veneer.

There are two great advantages to getting porcelain veneers. The first is that they create an incredibly lifelike appearance of a tooth. Tooth enamel is actually translucent – allowing some light to penetrate through to the inner tooth. In the past, materials for tooth repair were not, which meant a whiter, yet fake-looking appearance. Porcelain is glass-like, which means it is translucent, just like enamel is. When light hits it, it acts remarkably similar to how enamel reacts to light.

The other big advantage to porcelain veneers is its stain resistance. In many cases, combining dental bonding materials with red wine, tobacco, tea, or coffee products meant bad staining and discoloring. Porcelain, being a ceramic, is glass-like, meaning it is not as susceptible to such staining, and holds up rather nicely in color.