Treatments
Cosmetic dentistry
Changing how your teeth look is a bigger decision than it is usually made to sound. The first appointment is a conversation about what you actually want and what is genuinely achievable, not a sales pitch with a treatment plan attached.
- Starts with
- A consultation, not a drill
- Bonding
- Usually one visit
- Veneers
- Two or more visits
- Quote
- In writing, before starting
What is actually on the table
Four broad approaches, often combined. Which one suits depends on what is bothering you, not on which sounds most impressive.
Composite bonding
Tooth-coloured material shaped directly onto the tooth, usually in one visit with minimal drilling. Good for chips, small gaps and reshaping edges. Repairable if it chips later.
Veneers
Thin custom shells bonded to the front of teeth, made in a laboratory. More preparation of the tooth is needed, but the result lasts longer and resists staining better than bonding.
Whitening
Often the cheapest change with the biggest visible difference, and the sensible first step before any other cosmetic work, since existing restorations will not lighten.
Reshaping and contouring
Small adjustments to edges and shape that even things out. Modest on its own, but frequently the difference between a smile that looks corrected and one that looks natural.
The part most people are not told
Cosmetic work sits on top of whatever is already going on. If there is untreated decay, gum disease or a grinding habit underneath, the cosmetic result will not last, and you will have paid twice.
So the sequence is health first, appearance second. It is less exciting than starting straight away, and it is the reason the work still looks right in five years.
How we get from idea to result
- 01
You tell me what bothers you
In your own words, pointing at your own teeth. Not from a catalogue of treatments. It is much easier to plan around a real complaint than a treatment name.
- 02
I tell you what is realistic
Including where the limits are, what the trade-offs are, and whether something simpler would get you most of the way for a fraction of the cost.
- 03
A written plan and quote
Itemised, with the sequence set out, so you can take it away and think about it. Nothing is booked on the day you first ask about it.
- 04
Treatment, in stages if you prefer
Larger plans can be broken into stages spread over time, which spreads the cost and lets you see how each step looks before committing to the next.
Individual results and timeframes vary from person to person, depending on the condition of your teeth, gums, and other relevant medical conditions. I'll always give you a personalised treatment plan at your consultation appointment.
Frequently asked questions
Book a cosmetic consultation
Bring the thing that bothers you, however vaguely you can describe it. You will leave with an honest read on what is possible and what it would involve, with no obligation to go ahead.