Cover Ups
Got a funky tooth? You may not need to suffer braces to have perfectly aligned teeth. “With porcelain laminates, we can close spaces, change positions, and choose the shade,” says Marvin Dubin, DDS, of Mount Kisco. “First, we create the ‘new smile’ in wax so clients can see the size, shape, and positioning of the teeth. Once the client approves, he or she chooses the desired color, and the laminates are made.” Typically, laminates are used only for the eight or 10 teeth that show when you smile.
Price Tag: $1,200 to $1,500 per tooth
Marvin Dubin, DDS
Mount Kisco (914) 242-7100
Improve Your Ratios
Sometimes, being “long in the tooth” is a good thing. If your smile is too “gummy,” and you see more pink than white, then gingivectomy may be the answer. “We can reshape the tissue to make the tooth look longer, with a more pleasing gum-to-tooth ratio,” says William Schneweiss, DDS. This procedure can be done in conjunction with laminates or porcelain veneers.
Price Tag: $1,100 to $2,500 per procedure
Westchester Periodontal Associates, P.C.
White Plains (914) 946-1923; westchesterperio.com
Start From Scratch
In the olden days, when a tooth (or teeth) failed, the only solutions were dentures or bridges—which you would take out at night to clean. Eww is right. Today, implants are the gold standard of tooth replacement. “The implant itself is a titanium screw that goes into the bone, replacing the root of the missing tooth,” says Christopher Amenedo, DDS, of Hawthorne. “The screw bonds with the bone, making a strong base to build the tooth, which is permanent and looks and feels completely natural.”
Price Tag: $3,000 to $4,000 per tooth
Westchester Oral & Maxillofacial Associates
Hawthorne (914) 592-0440; westchesteroralsurgery.com
Plump ’Em Up
If nature didn’t give you a perfect pout, board-certified plastic surgeon David Palaia can. “I use a hyalouronic acid such as Juvéderm or Restylane for temporary lip augmentation,” he says. “Usually, one syringe is sufficient, and the lips stay plump from eight to twelve months.”
Price Tag: $600 per syringe
Northern Westchester Surgical Services, P.C.
3010 Westchester Ave, Purchase (914) 517-8220
400 E Main St, Mount Kisco (914) 242-7610
plasticsurgeryweb.com
Bleach, Baby, Bleach
Drinking coffee, tea, and red wine; smoking; taking a dose of tetracycline as a kid; even just the passage of time can stain your teeth. The current preferred treatment is the KöR whitening system, which can lighten teeth 16 shades or more. First the dentist makes a mold of your teeth to create custom trays to wear while sleeping. After two to six weeks, the dentist will apply the final whitening step and—voila!— you have whiter, brighter teeth.
Price Tag: $1,500
KöR Whitening Deep Bleaching System
Visit korwhitening.com to find a dentist in your area.
Firm It Up
Need a little lift? If a softening jaw- line or chin is standing between you and a great smile, consider Ultherapy, which uses targeted ultrasound waves to lift and tighten the skin. Immediate improvements are apparent with optimum results reached at about six months; the lift can last for another 18 months or so.
Price Tag: Eliminate lines above the lip, $450; tighten jowls, $1,500; neck, $1,800 (or jowls and neck together, $2,900); full face, $3,500
New York Group for Plastic Surgery
Tarrytown (914) 366-6139
nygplasticsurgery.com
