“People always want a brighter smile, so tooth whitening is something we see a whole lot of before weddings,” Dr. Lerch says. There are many tiers of tooth whitening available today, she says. “The darker your teeth, the more help they need,” she explains. “If you have nice white straight teeth, and basically like the color, then over-the-counter whitening strips are good because they give you that extra little whitening,” she says. But if you have significant discoloration, or discoloration on the sides of the teeth, these strips likely will not be sufficient.

Then the photographer says “smile.” You panic. Scared that the seismic space between your front two teeth or your discolored, uneven smile will forever mar the photos of what should be the happiest day of your life – your wedding day.The wedding of your dreams doesn’t have to be a nightmare. From new whitening techniques to porcelain veneers and other restorative dental work, the smile of your dreams is within your reach come your wedding day.

Restorative Dental Work Before the Wedding

Like options for whitening teeth, there are also several routes a person can take to restore broken, chipped, cracked or stained teeth.

Cosmetic Tooth Contouring Before the Wedding

Cosmetic dentists can correct minor defects in the shape and appearance of a tooth through a process referred to as tooth contouring or tooth reshaping.

“This is sort of like filing your nails,” “Let’s say one tooth is longer or pointed or has a chip that needs to be smoothed out, then with little cosmetic contouring teeth can look pretty, without the need for full braces or a crown,” she says. It’s not painful either. “It’s pretty much like when you are doing your fingernails, you know something is being done.