The Perfect Tooth Color

Question:

Dr. Sam, what is the perfect color for my teeth?

Answer:

The perfect color for your teeth is subject to your opinion. You may love your teeth to be too white because it looks great to you and but maybe not to your friends. The Hollywood crowd seems to like teeth that are so white; their smile overwhelms their face.

All that you can see is big white teeth glaring at you when they smile. It looks artificial and somewhat too desperate to look striking.

However, a patient can have white teeth that have translucency built into the porcelain so the color density is more natural. This level of care requires far more skill by the dentist.

The Perfect Color for Teeth

The perfect color to your teeth would be a combination of skin color, eye color, shape of your face, thickness of your lips and how much you smile. As an example, if you have thick lips, it would be better if you picked a shade that was whiter because your thick lips cause the teeth to look darker. Thick lips stop the light from reflecting on the teeth thus making them appear darker.

In my office, all factors are considered and are very important in order to give you the perfect color for your individual facial characteristics. The color is only part of the equation as the shape of the teeth can greatly affect the over all results. You may have the perfect color but you still don’t look good because the shape is wrong for your face.

Most dentists take an impression and send it to the lab to make the teeth. The lab just makes the teeth in a standard form. The teeth are standardized and not customized. Why have teeth that are shaped and shaded like everyone else? It is better to work on your specific characteristics and enhance your best features by specifically shaping and angling your teeth personally.

I take about 20 full-face photos from all angles and 20 close up photos that are displayed on a big screen. My ceramist and I work on developing the perfect shade, the shapes of your teeth, the color depth and the translucency to fit your face. The results are worth the effort.