Tag Archives: cheap smile makeovers

Teeth Whitening

Cheap Way to Fix Tetracycline Stains

I want to get my tetracycline stains fixed, but don’t have a lot of money. I’m looking for an inexpensive way to take care of this. I’ve heard porcelain veneers are the way to go with this. Is there a dental school that will do it more cheaply using interns or something?

Kevin

Dear Kevin,

Bleaching Trays

I am very glad you wrote. I am going to save you from a serious disaster. Porcelain veneers are an advanced cosmetic procedure. Tetracycline stains are the most challenging of the porcelain veneers’ cases. There are countless cosmetic dentistry horror stories and I fear if you go forward with the “cheap” solution plan that you’ll end up as one of them.

This is one of those times that you will want to save up for a top of the line cosmetic dentist, preferably one who is AACD accredited. In the meantime, that does not mean that you can’t do anything in the meantime. My suggestion is that you get your dentist to provide you with teeth whitening trays, the take home kind, and professional strength whitening gel.

If you are persistent, you can make a real difference in the appearance of your teeth. Don’t get Zoom Whitening. Even though it is strong, you would need too many sessions to make it affordable. Just use the whitening trays. It’s ideal if you can wear the gel overnight. If you can’t, don’t worry. Just wear it for as long as you can each day.

That will give you some improvement while you save up for a skilled and artistic cosmetic dentist.

This blog is brought to you by Lafayette, LA Cosmetic Dentists Drs. Foreman and Thimmesch.

Dental Bonding

Looking for a cheap new smile

I have discolored front teeth and two chipped teeth from when I fell. My dentist fixed them several years ago and while they were fixed, the color sticks out as being different from the rest of the teeth. I want to fix the discoloration on both my natural teeth and the bonded teeth. My dentist suggested porcelain veneers which colors the whole tooth, but the price is pretty hefty. Is there a way to get a uniform smile cheaper?

David

Dear David,

before and after dental bonding

I am very glad you wrote. First, your dentist does not need to do either bonding or porcelain veneers on you for your smile makeover. I posted a picture above that shows how dental bonding should blend in naturally when done correctly. If he can’t do dental bonding, he cannot do porcelain veneers well either.

If you want to go cheap, I would not suggest veneers. The good news is that you won’t need them if they only thing you are concerned about is the discoloration. This can easily and affordably be fixed in two steps.

The first step would be to get your teeth whitened. Any dentist can do this, even yours. It is the easiest cosmetic procedure around. Once that is done, the next step will be to get your dental bonding replaced. However, I do not recommend you have your normal dentist do this. He doesn’t have the skills and/or materials to match the bonding to your natural tooth structure. Instead, I want you to go to someone with cosmetic dentistry training. Look at their smile galleries to see what type of results they get. Also, see if they have someone on staff who is AACD accredited. That would be ideal.

This blog is brought to you by Lafayette, LA Dentists Drs. Foreman and Thimmesch.