I am having a hard time picking between three dentists highly rated for cosmetic dentistry on Yelp! Here is what I am thinking of doing for my smile makeover. First, I’ll get Zoom Whitening because that’s faster and I think I need to whiten either before or immediately after getting the smile makeover done. Then, I want to have bonding done on eight teeth. I chose bonding over veneers because it is cheaper. Now, the color I am thinking should be BL2. I’m 55 with a medium skin tone and dark blonde hair. Is there a way to pick a dentist based on this information when they all have 5 stars?

Kelli,

Dear Kelli,

I can tell you have put a lot of thought, time, and effort into this and you are committed to getting the best outcome possible. With that in mind I want to slightly change the direction you are taking here. First, don’t worry about what specific color to give the dentist. The two of you can go over that together when you design your smile. There will be many more decisions aside from color and an expert cosmetic dentist can guide you through all of them. You don’t have to figure those out on your own.

As for whitening, you will definitely want to do that before your smile makeover, not after. You are correct that Zoom Whitening is the fastest, so going that way is fine. Just make sure to leave between one and two weeks for the whitening color to settle before going to your cosmetic appointment.

The key to a beautiful smile makeover is not the materials and shade you choose, as much as it is the dentist. You need an expert, artistic cosmetic dentist who knows how to get a stunning result. Yelp! isn’t the best place to locate that dentist. They are great for things like a plumber, or a washing machine repairman. But, their algorithms don’t work well for what you need. For instance, they do not distinguish whether a dentist has 5 stars for being a nice dentist who is good at fillings or an excellent cosmetic dentist. As a test, I did a search for an expert cosmetic dentist in an area where I know of a few great ones. Yet, none of them were listed on the top three cosmetic dentists listed on Yelp! Of the ones who were, two of them don’t even do cosmetic work. The third one says she does but does not have a smile gallery, which is a bad sign.

My suggestion is you go to the American Academy of Cosmetic Dentistry webpage (aacd.com), and look for an accredited cosmetic dentist. These are the top cosmetic dentists in the country. You can also do an internet search in your area for an AACD accredited dentist.

One final thing. You mentioned wanting bonding for financial considerations. Dental bonding is cheaper when it is for something like a chipped tooth or closing a tooth gap. However, when you are talking about covering an entire surface area of a tooth it actually gets more expensive than porcelain veneers because it has to be done freehand.

This blog is brought to you by Hilton Head Cosmetic Dentist Dr. Bonnie Rothwell.