What goes into a smile makeover
A smile makeover is not one treatment. It is a plan that combines whichever treatments your smile needs, in the right order, so that the result looks like it belongs on your face. The usual ingredients are:
- Teeth whitening to lift the base shade before anything else is matched to it.
- Porcelain or composite veneers on six to ten front teeth to change shape, length, colour and small alignment problems.
- Crowns on teeth that are too broken or heavily filled to hold a veneer.
- Clear aligners or braces when teeth are crowded enough that veneers alone would look bulky.
- Gum contouring to even up the gum line or reduce a gummy smile.
- Composite bonding and edge reshaping for small chips and uneven edges.
Most makeovers at i-Smile use two or three of these. Someone with worn, slightly yellow front teeth might need whitening and six veneers. Someone with one dark tooth and a small gap might need one crown and some bonding. The point of the design stage is to work out the smallest set of treatments that gets you the result, not the largest.
Everything starts with digital smile design. We photograph your face and teeth, and the new smile is designed on the photographs so that tooth length, width and the curve of the smile follow your lips and face. That design is then turned into a trial mock-up on your actual teeth, in temporary material, so you can see and feel it before any tooth is prepared.
What treatment actually feels like
The design and mock-up visits involve no drilling and no injections. You leave the mock-up visit having seen a preview you can photograph and show family, and the mock-up is simply peeled off.
Whitening is done in the clinic in a single visit, with the gums protected. Some people feel short, sharp zings of sensitivity for a day afterwards.
Veneer preparation is done under local anaesthetic. A thin layer of enamel, often less than a millimetre, is removed from the front of each tooth and an impression or scan is taken. You wear temporaries for one to two weeks while the porcelain veneers are made, then they are bonded in a single longer visit. Crowns follow the same pattern with a little more shaping. The new teeth feel smooth and slightly larger for a few days, and speech settles within a week.
If aligners are part of the plan, they come first and add months, but the veneers that follow are thinner and more conservative because the teeth are already in the right place.
Why patients choose i-Smile for smile makeovers
- You see it before you commit. Digital smile design and a trial mock-up are included in every makeover at i-Smile, so the shape and length are agreed before any tooth is touched.
- One dentist designs and delivers. Dr. Upasana Gosalia, whose work covers cosmetic dentistry, clear aligners and implants, plans the case and does every stage herself, so the whitening shade, veneer colour and gum line are coordinated by one pair of eyes.
- Aligners and veneers under one roof. With over 390 aligner cases since 2012, we can move teeth first when that gives a more conservative result, rather than over-preparing them to hide crowding.
- CAD/CAM support for veneers and crowns that fit precisely at the gum line.
- Rated 5.0 on Practo from over 700 reviews and 4.9 on Google, serving Ghatkopar since 2012.
- EMI available, and the ₹350 consultation fee is adjusted against your treatment.
Aftercare: keeping your new smile
- Brush twice daily with a non-abrasive toothpaste and floss normally. Veneers and crowns do not decay, but the tooth at their edges can.
- Avoid biting nails, pens or ice, and do not open packets with your teeth. Porcelain is strong in chewing but chips under sharp point loads.
- If you grind or clench at night, wear a night guard, which we can make for you. This is the single biggest factor in how long veneers last.
- Tea, coffee, red wine and turmeric do not stain porcelain, but they do stain the natural teeth around it and any composite bonding. A whitening touch-up every year or two keeps the natural teeth matched.
- Keep six-monthly cleaning and check-up visits so the margins can be checked.
With this care, porcelain veneers and crowns commonly last 10 to 15 years. Composite work is expected to need refreshing sooner.
What changes the price
- Number of teeth. Six front teeth is the usual minimum for a full-smile change, eight to ten if you show more teeth when you smile.
- Veneers or crowns. Crowns, and the post and core sometimes needed under them, cost more per tooth than veneers.
- Porcelain or composite. Composite veneers cost a fraction of porcelain but last a shorter time and stain more.
- Orthodontics first. Adding aligners adds their cost but often reduces the number of veneers needed.
- Gum work. Contouring is quoted separately.
- Whitening. Included as the first step in most makeover plans.
