Beautiful Tierra appeared in the MAC calendar for both February and September. Here are the calendar photos as they appeared.
Tierra was Ms. Desert States 2007 from Reno, NV, and was second runner-up in the Mrs. U.S.-Globe Pageant. Prior to competing in the pageant Tierra came to Dr. Huefner for porcelain veneers (of course, done by MAC, Microdental Advanced Ceramics).
Dr. Norman Huefner, General and Cosmetic Dentistry, Laguna Niguel, CA
Philip is a professional man and clearly understood that his appearance affected his image and credibility with his clients and customers. He didn’t like his teeth, he didn’t like his smile and was increasingly becoming more self conscious. Finally he knew that he had to do something to correct his teeth and smile problems that had bothered him so much.
BEFORE: His teeth were chipped and his right front tooth had a huge filling on the edge
He didn’t like the color and that his side teeth (bicuspids) leaned inwards. This gave him the appearance of two big teeth and the rest small teeth. But Philip wanted a wider, more masculine smile that he could be proud of. The treatment of choice for Philip was porcelain veneers on his upper eight teeth. When he learned that his smile could be completed in just several weeks he was excited to get started on his treatment right away. Dr. Huefner took impressions of his teeth to plan a smile design that he felt would make Philip look his best. More squarish front teeth look more masculine on most men, and that is what Dr. Huefner had planned for Philip.
To see examples of various smile designs on this blog, click this link.
After designing the porcelain veneer shape, length and position on the model, Dr. Huefner transferred the design onto Philip’s teeth, called the “trial smile“. This was Philip’s “test drive” to make sure he liked the smile design before Dr. Huefner gave his final directions to the ceramist.
“TRIAL SMILE”: Philip wore the trial smile for several days before approving of everything and choosing the final color
Some slight modifications were done as per Philip’s request. Dr. Huefner then gave the final directions to his ceramist, the porcelain veneers were fabricated and two weeks later the final porcelain veneers were bonded onto Philip’s teeth.
AFTER: final porcelain veneers by Dr. Huefner
As you can imagine, Philip was extremely pleased with his new smile. He especially loved the color and “naturalness” of his porcelain veneers.
Dr. Norman Huefner, General and Cosmetic Dentistry, Laguna Niguel, CA
Amber’s crooked and disheveled smile was really starting to embarrass her. She is a very attractive lady in her early 50s and her smile certainly didn’t go with the rest of her image. She was ready for a “new smile” and wanted to learn what cosmetic dentistry might be able to do for her.
The first cosmetic dentistry consultation is generally just a fact finding appointment, the patient wanting to find out what possible treatments can be done and if he/she like and trust the cosmetic dentist. The first three questions Dr. Huefner asked of Amber were “How can I help you?”, “What do you want changed about your smile?” and “What kind of smile do you want?”
She pretty much knew what she wanted. Her teeth were crooked, and she wanted them straight. Her teeth were discolored, and she wanted them whiter. She had several discolored fillings, and she didn’t want her fillings to show. Her teeth had worn down and showed the effects of age, and she wanted slightly longer and more youthful, feminine looking teeth.
Amber's smile before cosmetic dentistry
Amber had bridges and crowns on her back side teeth that she wanted replaced as well, but she didn’t want to do that until later. Thus her goals were to first restore her front teeth, giving her a great smile, and later to do her side teeth. Dr. Huefner assured her that he could do her treatment that way if she preferred.
After much discussion and consideration Dr. Huefner recommended that Amber have porcelain laminate veneers on her front teeth. Then later she could have porcelain veneers on her side teeth that would also replace her fillings. Along with that she could later replace her back bridges and crowns.
After discussing the design features that Dr. Huefner recommended for her front teeth (size, shape, length, color, texture and translucency), Amber was pleased to learn that her new smile for her front teeth could be completed in less than three weeks.
Below is the completed smile makeover with porcelain veneers that Dr. Huefner did for Amber’s front six teeth.
Amber's new smile with porcelain veneers by Dr. Huefner
Dr. Norman Huefner, Cosmetic and General Dentistry, Laguna Niguel, CA
Mrs. Texas, Catherine Blades, came to Dr. Huefner’s Sensational Smiles cosmetic dental practice in Orange County, California, for porcelain veneers prior to competing in the Mrs. U.S.-Globe beauty pageant.
Catherine wanted to look her very best, and trusted that Dr. Huefner would create a beautiful new smile for her. The beauty pageant was held at the Westin Mission Hills Resort in Rancho Mirage, CA, and Catherine did extremely well.
A few months later Catherine modeled for one of courses that Dr. Huefner gives to cosmetic dentists (at the Academy of Comprehensive Esthetics annual meeting in Dallas, Texas). Here are some of the beautiful portraits Dr. Huefner took of Catherine a few months after placing her porcelain veneers:
Catherine's smile with porcelain veneers by Dr. Huefner
Dr. Norman Huefner, General and Cosmetic Dentistry, Laguna Niguel, CA
After being very self conscious about her teeth and smile Barbara finally decided to see what cosmetic dentistry could do for her.
A beautiful young woman, Barbara would often avoid smiling in photos. She became very aware that her less-than-great smile was effecting her socially, especially with men that she was interested in dating. Barbara was also in the business world and in sales. She was acutely aware that she didn’t look her best in public because of the issues with her smile.
When she came to Dr. Huefner she askes several questions. Did she need braces? Gum surgery? Bleaching? Caps? What would it take to give her a great smile?
Barbara was very self conscious about the appearance of her teeth and smile.
After listening to Barbara’s concerns, Dr. Huefner did a cosmetic analysis of all the features of her smile. First, she was right. She did have a gummy smile. Not only did she show too much of her gums, but they were also uneven. Also, her teeth were small and rounded, with spacing in between. Did she want to change the shape of her teeth too? Barbara said that for the time being, she would be happy with less gums showing and whiter teeth.
Dr. Huefner agreed that would be the best place to start. So, he first did a gum lift. Using a dental gum laser, he reshaped her gums. Then he bleached her teeth to make them whiter. The result was a huge improvement, even gums and whiter teeth!
After a “gum lift” with the dental gum laser and teeth whitening, Barbara’s smile was much improved.
Barbara was very pleased with the results, but a few months passed and Barbara returned to Dr. Huefner to discuss any other options available to her to make smile even more attractive. Dr. Huefner explained that the ideal way to take her smile to the next level would be with porcelain veneers. He could make her teeth all even, whiter in color, better shaped by veneering her eight upper front teeth. After seeing numerous before and after photos of other patients that Dr. Huefner had treated with porcelain veneers, Barbara was excited about getting a sensational new smile with porcelain veneers and was anxious to start treatment immediately.
Barbara’s completed smile makeover with gum lift and porcelain veneers.
Dr. Huefner did eight porcelain veneers for Barbara and her treatment was completed in less than a month’s time. As you might imagine, from examining her before and after photos, Barbara was absolutely thrilled with the results achieved for her. Now she loves her smile!
Dr. Norman Huefner, Cosmetic and General Dentistry, Laguna Niguel, CA
Becoming self conscious about her teeth and smile, Anna felt that it was giving her a premature aged look.
Having a habit of grinding her teeth at night when she slept, over the years she wore her teeth down and they got increasingly shorter and shorter. Her lower teeth were the worst in her opinion, as she really hated not only the very small worn down size, but also the spaced in between.
Anna's Aged Smile with Worn Teeth
Anna especially didn't like her lower short, spaced teeth
After discussing her concerns Anna expressed that she was actually looking for more than just correcting the worn spaced teeth. She really wanted a beautiful, more youthful and feminine smile, something that would really give her confidence and help her look her very best in public and in social or business situations.
Dr. Huefner recommended to Anna that he utilize porcelain veneers to treat her dental problems. That would give him the best control over the size, shape, length and color of her new teeth, without having to place crowns or caps on her teeth. This would result in more stronger and more healthy teeth underneath.
Anna’s treatment was done in two phases. First, her upper teeth were restored. This process took three weeks to complete. Following this, her lower teeth were restored, completing her dental reconstruction. Again, that took three weeks.
Anna's new smile with porcelain veneers by Dr. Huefner
Anna's short, spaced lower teeth corrected with porcelain veneers by Dr. Huefner
Above is the final result achieved for Anna. As you might guess from the remarkable before and after photos, Anna was delighted with how her dental treatment looked and felt after completion.
Dr. Norman Huefner, General and Cosmetic Dentistry, Laguna Niguel, CA
You want a “new smile?” Choosing the best smile for you can be challenging because there are virtually a thousand different combinations of shape, length, texture, opacity/translucency and color (shade) that porcelain veneers can be made. Cosmetic dentistry is a true art form, and rarely would two different cosmetic dentists create the same kind of smile design for the same patient. Let me discuss the amazing aspect of individualizing porcelain veneers and the creation of an individualized “personality” by varying their shapes.
It is interesting, as the shape of the upper front six teeth each play a different role in this regard. The front two teeth, called the central incisors, have the role of indicating age. The teeth next to the central incisors, the second tooth on each side from the front teeth are called the lateral incisors. They are the teeth that impart gender to the smile design. The next tooth back from the lateral incisors, the “eye teeth” or canine teeth, impart personality. I will explain how each of these teeth perform their respective roles.
First, the central incisors, which are the most obvious teeth to be seen (or sometimes “not seen”). In a young person they appear rectangular, with rounded corners, and are usually 11mm or 12mm in length. However, with age and wear these teeth shorten, sometimes as much as 1-5mm by the time one gets to middle or late age. Along with shortening, they become more square in shape and with that also comes square corners rather than the normal rounds corners of younger teeth. Thus, for someone who is concerned with their appearance and their age, changing the length and shape of the central incisors porcelain veneers can give one a much younger looking smile. Also, teeth in general usually darken with age, so to compliment this we almost always make the porcelain veneers lighter in color, depending on the wishes of the patient.
Next, varying the shape of the lateral incisors porcelain veneers can make a smile look more feminine or more masculine, imparting some gender characteristics. Thus for women, we shape the lateral incisors porcelain veneers to be more rounded at the end, and also slightly shorter than the central incisors. We call this a “gull wing” silhouette.
Feminine Smile Design
For men, we lengthen the lateral incisors porcelain veneers to be almost the same length as the central incisors and make them more square in shape, which makes their teeth look more masculine.
Masculine Smile Design
But the most interesting is the choice in shape of the canine teeth, as these are the teeth that most imparts “personality” to the smile design. Cuspids that are pointy, more prominent, and longer than their adjacent teeth impart a more “aggressive” smile. This is used most often when a patient wants to appear “more powerful” with their new smile. The opposite can be created by flattening or rounding the tip of the cuspids and making them less prominent, giving the patient a more “passive” appearance. This design would be used most often with a large person or one with many dominant features who wants to soften their appearance with their porcelain veneers. But, most patients prefer that we create for them a more normal cuspid, not leaning to either the “aggressive” or “passive” smile design.
There is no “right” or “wrong” smile design, but what is most important that the cosmetic dentist discuss smile design options with the patient and that the patient have some input as to their preferences. Sometimes these are subtle differences with regard to shape, length and color of their new porcelain veneers and other times the differences can make a dramatic difference.
Dr. Norman Huefner, General and Cosmetic Dentistry, Laguna Niguel, CA
When patients comes in to Dr. Huefner’s dental practice to have us create a new smile for them they are always a little concerned about knowing that they’ll get the kind of smile that they want, that they’ll be happy with the end result. This is very understandable. Obviously the patient has certain goals in mind, as does Dr. Huefner, the cosmetic dentist. And if communication is good between all, then we will most likely all be on the same track.
Experienced cosmetic dentists like Dr. Huefner usually have a trick up their sleeve that enables his patients the ability to preview their new smile and actually approve of all the parameters before the final smile makeover is made with porcelain veneers and/or porcelain crowns. It is called the “trial smile” and the subject of this post.
I’m going to take you through Mark’s cosmetic treatment and explain the process and the “trial smile” preview experience.
Mark's smile before cosmetic dentistry by Dr. Huefner
Above you’ll see how Mark’s smile appeared when he came in for his first cosmetic dentistry consultation. The first thing Dr. Huefner asked was “How can I help you Mark?” Mark replied that he was in a business that required that he do a lot of public speaking and that he had become increasingly more self conscious that his appearance wasn’t keeping up with the rest of his image. He felt that his unattractive smile might be holding him back and was ready to explore how cosmetic dentistry might be able to improve his smile.
After taking some photos of Mark’s teeth and smile and putting them up on the computer monitor for Mark to see, Dr. Huefner then asked Mark what didn’t he specifically like about his teeth, what would he like to change and what would he like his smile to look like?
Mark indicated that he didn’t like that his teeth were crooked and discolored. He particularly didn’t care for the way his upper cuspids (canine teeth) stuck out like “fangs”. His goals were to have straight, masculine looking teeth, whiter, but not “too white”. He looked at a number of the before and after photos Dr Huefner showed him of other patients he had treated who has similar problems to Mark’s. After more discussion with Dr. Huefner, Mark expressed to Dr. Huefner that he wanted a smile similar to several of the patients that he had seen. Dr. Huefner assured him that his goals could be achieved.
Dr. Huefner explained to Mark that he would be very specific about designing his new smile and that the process involved utilizing the “trial smile“. First, taking into account everything that Mark had mentioned, Dr. Huefner would design a smile and let him preview it first. The shape, length, color, relative proportion of all the teeth were all things that both Mark and Dr. Huefner would need to approve of before making the final porcelain veneers or porcelain crowns.
Mark had a good question. “What if I don’t like the trial smile?”, asked Mark. Dr. Huefner told him that the trial smile could be modified if he didn’t like it, and that was the most important part of using it in the design part of treatment. If Mark wanted his teeth longer or shorter than the teeth in trial smile, Dr. Huefner could make those changes before the final porcelain veneers were made. Likewise, if he wanted the color lighter or less light, then he could make note of that for the final porcelain veneers as well. Also, if one side was longer than the other, it could be adjusted as well. When all adjustments were made according to Mark’s preferences, then Dr. Huefner would take photos of Mark’s “approved trial smile“, along with models and measurements of each tooth. Then those records would be given to Dr. Huefner’s master ceramist so that he would have a very specific guide as to how to make the final veneers according to the smile that Mark approved of.
Mark's "trial smile" after approval. The next step was making the final porcelain veneers to match the design of the "trial smile".
Above is a photo of Mark with his “trial smile“. He approved of the design, length, color and proportion and the design next goes to Dr. Huefner’s master ceramist to fabricate Mark’s porcelain veneers.
Note that Mark will be wearing his “trial smile” for two weeks. One of the other greatest features of the “trial smile” is that the patient walks out of the office with it after the first treatment visit. Therefore an almost instant transformation. When the patient returns two weeks later for the final porcelain veneers or porcelain crowns to be placed, the “trial smile” is gently removed and the porcelain veneers and/or porcelain crowns are placed for the patient to inspect. Upon approval of the final porcelain veneers and/or porcelain crowns, Dr. Huefner will then permanently bond or cement the restorations in place. To some dentists all this may seem like a overkill, but it is much more important to spend time in the design and approval process than having a patient not happy with their cosmetic dentistry and then wanting to have the dentistry redone and changed.
Dr. Norman Huefner, Cosmetic and General Dentistry, Laguna Niguel, CA
Bruce had full mouth reconstruction (placing crowns on every tooth) done by his family dentist. However, he just didn’t like the end result and came to Dr. Huefner for a second opinion about redoing the dentistry.
Bruce didn't like the dentistry done by his previous dentist
Upon carefully evaluating Bruce’s dentistry it was clear that the dentistry was technically well done. The crowns all fit accurately and his bite was even. Obviously his family dentist has worked extremely hard.
But Bruce’s concerns were not the technical issues. He just didn’t like the way it looked and felt. When asked to explain, Bruce recited a list of “concerns”. First, he felt the teeth were too thick and didn’t look real. He would have preferred they be a little whiter. Also, the back teeth were so wide that he felt that he didn’t have enough room for his tongue. He also explained that the biting surface didn’t chew food very well. After almost a year had gone by since the dentistry had been done, Bruce felt that he would really have to replace all the work or he would never be happy.
He asked Dr. Huefner what he would do differently? First, Dr. Huefner said that he would use a more natural looking porcelain, Empress porcelain. Dr. Huefner likes that as it is very strong and yet imparts a very natural and lifelike appearance. Also, it has shades available that are lighter in color that he thought Bruce would look good with.
What could be done to make his bite better. Making the teeth thinner with a better biting surface should solve those problems for Bruce, especially the part about needing more room for his tongue.
The main thing that Dr. Huefner stressed with Bruce was that cosmetic dentistry is an art. Virtually no two cosmetic dentists would treat the patient to give an identical result. Much depends on experience, training, personal preference and most of all, artistic ability.
Bruce's smile redone with Empress procelain by Dr. Huefner
Above you’ll see the results Bruce got from Dr. Huefner. You’ll note the color is whiter and more “lifelike”. Also, the teeth are thinner and look more natural.
Dr. Norman Huefner, General and Cosmetic Dentistry, Laguna Niguel, CA
Thomas was very embarrassed about the appearance of his teeth! He was the first one to admit that they were dingy, dark and “just plain ugly”. The cavities and fillings, and staining that occurred over the years had taken its toll and Thomas could be called the victim of having a horrible smile.
Thomas was ashamed and embarrassed about his teeth and smile
He consulted with Dr. Huefner regarding the possibilities that cosmetic dentistry might offer him. He had very specific goals. He wanted “a great smile”, one that was professional looking and would help him appear his very best in public. Thomas was also changing careers and dating and realized the value of a great looking smile to both of those.
One of the most important things to be determined was “how white” did Thomas want his teeth? After all, his natural teeth were extremely dark. After much thought and looking at numerous photos of other patient’s smiles and the dental shade (color) guide, Thomas decided on a relatively white color. Knowing that, Dr. Huefner was able to recommend appropriate treatment. Teeth bleaching wasn’t an option for Thomas, but porcelain veneers were. Thomas could have his one front porcelain crown replaced and porcelain veneers on his other upper front and side teeth. Also, his lower teeth didn’t need to be as light, so teeth bleaching would work for them.
Thomas was excited to begin his cosmetic dental treatment with Dr. Huefner, and his new smile was completed in less than a months time!
A sensational smile for Thomas with porcelain veneers and one porcelain crown
Dr. Norman Huefner, Cosmetic and General Dentistry, Laguna Niguel, CA (949-495-6322)
