As much as you want pretty teeth, actually getting them can be tricky and tiring. Many patients don’t know what their smiles would need to look “just right” in the mirror. That said, you should learn gorgeous grins’ core traits before pursuing any cosmetic dentistry. The good news is that your local Fairfax dentist can share a few of them with you! So, here’s a helpful primer on four qualities of a beautiful smile that'll captivate anyone.

Low Gum Display

For starters, a pretty grin is one with a low gum display. It’ll reveal its teeth clearly and properly without nearby gum tissue getting in the way. If a smile becomes too “gummy,” the gums will keep you from showing off your tooth enamel.

Thankfully, it’s not too hard to correctly reveal your teeth. The simplest way is to just pull back your lips enough to expose the pearly whites beneath them. As for the problem of a “gummy smile,” a dentist can perform a session of gum recontouring that removes the excess tissue.

Bright Tooth Color

Another quality you’ll need to get a stunning smile is white and shiny teeth. After all, most folks link a brightly-colored grin to cleanliness, health, and strength. Teeth distorted by yellow and brown stains tend to seem dirty and unpleasant to many people.

Of course, today’s modern dentists have many ways to brighten up a grin. One of the more obvious options is teeth whitening – a treatment that directly removes stains from your enamel. On the other hand, there are also choices like porcelain veneers and dental crowns. These latter options would hide the discolored areas beneath bright porcelain or ceramic.

Balanced Tooth Size

As it turns out, a nice-looking grin also requires a balanced tooth size. People view teeth that look overly large as a turn-off, something that detracts from your appearance. Very small or “stubby” teeth are the same; they can often seem alien and unnerving.

If your teeth aren’t the right size, cosmetic dentists can help out a bit. A dental bonding treatment lets them apply resin to make small pearly whites look larger. On the other hand, they could place porcelain veneers to hide teeth with distorted sizes.

Aligned or “Straight” Teeth

Last but not least, Hollywood-level smiles always have aligned or “straight” teeth. A crooked grin just isn’t appealing and won’t look good to the people around you. Similarly, teeth with a bad tilt or “cant” will seem off at a glance.

Dentists have several ways to treat or fix unaligned teeth. Firstly, they could re-align your smile with orthodontic options like Invisalign or traditional braces. There’s also the option of hiding the crooked teeth from view with porcelain veneers.

As you can see, your smile needs various traits to look pretty. Talk to your dental provider about which treatments would get them for you!