If you are considering dental veneers, you may be worried that you’ll end up with a fake or unnatural-looking smile. Whether you are looking to cover up a single imperfection or want to transform your teeth with a full set of veneers, it’s important that you find a cosmetic dentist that will make your veneers look natural and blend in with the rest of your smile.
In this article, we will discuss the characteristics of natural-looking veneers and help you determine which type of veneers will give you the smile you’ve always wanted.
Luminae is a cosmetic dentistry and facial aesthetics office in Las Vegas, NV that specializes in dental veneers. Dr. Phong Tran Cao is a highly-skilled general and cosmetic dentist with years of training and experience in full-face cosmetic treatments. To learn more about our dental veneers or any of our other aesthetic solutions, contact Luminae today.
Factors That Make Veneers Look Natural
There are several factors that can make dental veneers look completely natural and improve the overall appearance of your smile. While many people may be concerned about having fake-looking veneers, a skilled cosmetic dentist will ensure that all of these factors are met to help you achieve a more realistic look.
Reflects Light Like Natural Teeth
Certain materials used for veneers are opaque, meaning they are one flat, solid color. This will give them the appearance of being fake, as they will be much shinier and brighter than your normal teeth.
In order to achieve natural-looking veneers, your cosmetic dentist should use a material like porcelain that is semi-translucent. This will allow light to pass through and reflect off of them the way it would with the natural surface of your teeth.
Mimic Thickness of Natural Teeth
Certain no-prep veneer options adhere directly to your tooth without your cosmetic dentist removing any of your enamel first. This can make your teeth appear bulky and can even alter the shape of your mouth.
Composite and porcelain veneers are made incredibly thin while still maintaining their strength. While it may be tempting to choose more cost-effective options that don’t require preparation, you should avoid no-prep veneers if you’re trying to achieve a more natural look.
Match the Color of Your Natural Teeth
While some people opt to have a full set of veneers done at once, it’s not necessary. If you have a single problem area where a tooth is cracked or chipped or there is an awkward gap between two teeth, one or two veneers may be all you need. However, you may be concerned about your veneers standing out against the color of your natural teeth.
Many people choose to have teeth whitening done before applying a veneer, but that’s not always needed. Your cosmetic dentist can carefully color-match your veneer to the rest of your teeth, or you can choose a semi-translucent material like porcelain that will blend in with the color of your natural tooth enamel.
Match the Shape of Your Natural Teeth
Another way to ensure that your veneers look natural is to find a skilled cosmetic dentist who can match the veneer to the shape of your natural tooth structure. Many patients prefer to keep the shape of their natural smile, and it’s important that their veneers are all the right size to maintain that look.
If you choose to fix a single damaged tooth with a veneer, it’s important to get the size and shape right. Similar to matching the color of your veneer to look like a natural tooth, applying a veneer that fits with the shape of your smile will keep it from standing out or looking unnatural.
Certain cosmetic dentists and dental surgeons can create digital impressions of your teeth right in their office to ensure that your veneers match the characteristics of your existing teeth.
Fit the Width of Your Natural Teeth
Unless you are getting veneers to close a gap in your teeth, you’ll likely want them to fit the width of your natural teeth. If you choose a quick veneer option that requires no preparation, the available veneers may not exactly match the width of your existing teeth. This can create a bulky, awkward appearance and can make the veneers feel uncomfortable in your mouth.
Which Type of Veneers Look the Most Natural?
When considering dental veneers, it can be confusing to find the right material for your needs. You should always speak with your dentist about your concerns and dental goals during your consultation for veneers. However, if you want permanent veneers that look completely natural, porcelain is often the best choice.
Advantages of Porcelain Veneers
There are several factors that make porcelain veneers the most natural option. They are thin and translucent, making them perfect for blending in with the color and shape of your natural teeth. However, they are also strong, robust, and long-lasting, which makes them highly resistant to staining, chipping, or cracking.
They last longer and are a more permanent option compared to other veneer materials as well. Composite resin veneers have an average lifespan of about five to seven years. The results of porcelain veneers, however, can last around ten years, with certain cases lasting as long as 20 years.
Natural-looking porcelain veneers are also biocompatible, meaning that they won’t have a negative impact on your gums, surrounding teeth, or other soft tissue in your mouth.
How Much Do Porcelain Veneers Cost?
On average, each porcelain veneer costs around $1,000 per tooth. On the low end, a porcelain veneer is about $950, but the price can range up to $2,500 per tooth, depending on the cosmetic dentist applying them.
Other Types of Veneers
Porcelain may be the most natural material for veneers, but it may not be in everyone’s budget or dental goals to have a permanent procedure done. For this reason, cosmetic dentists offer several other options for patients.
Composite veneers, as mentioned earlier, are made from composite resin. They appear very natural but are more prone to discoloration and damage compared to porcelain. However, composite veneers are easily replaceable and completely reversible and are often more cost-effective than porcelain.
Removable or temporary veneers may be a good option for patients who are concerned with the permanence of other veneers or the process of shaving down your tooth enamel to apply them. They fit in your mouth like a retainer or mouthguard but can be more expensive than porcelain or composite.
Lumineers are another type of porcelain veneer, but they are thinner and require less preparation. For this reason, they are more prone to imperfections and don’t last as long as traditional porcelain.
Get Natural-Looking Porcelain Veneers At Luminae
At Luminae in Las Vegas, NV, our highly skilled cosmetic dental surgeons can create porcelain veneers to give you the natural-looking smile you’ve always wanted. We combine scientific expertise with an artistic sensibility to achieve technical perfection and aesthetically beautiful results. To finally attain the smile of your dreams, contact Luminae today.
