Cosmetic care
Porcelain Veneers
Smile design in porcelain or composite, from a dentist with a UofM aesthetics postdoctorate.
Porcelain veneers are thin custom shells bonded to the front of your teeth to change their shape, shade, and alignment. This is Dr. Alejandra deFuentes Cutter's particular strength: her postdoctorate at the University of Michigan was in aesthetics, and smile design is the work she most enjoys doing.
What veneers can change
Teeth that are permanently discolored and will not respond to whitening. Chips and worn edges. Teeth that are slightly crooked or uneven, where full orthodontics is not something you want, would take longer than you are willing to give it, or on its own would not finish the result you are actually after. Gaps you would rather close. Teeth that are too small or misshapen for the rest of your smile. Veneers address shape, shade, and position together, which is why they can transform a smile that no single treatment would fix.
Smile design, not just veneers
Anyone can order porcelain. The result depends entirely on the design decisions made first: how long the teeth should be, how they should relate to your lip when you smile, how much translucency the edges need, where the midline sits relative to your face. Aesthetic dentistry is the discipline that answers those questions properly, and it is what a postdoctorate in the subject actually trains you to do. A smile is designed around your face, not selected from a shade guide.
Porcelain or composite?
Composite veneers are sculpted directly onto the tooth in a single visit and cost considerably less, which makes them a good answer for smaller corrections or when you want to see the shape before committing. Porcelain costs more, takes two visits, and resists staining far better while holding its luster for many years. Composite bonding is very much part of Dr. deFuentes Cutter's specialty as well, so this is a genuine choice rather than a nudge toward the more expensive option.
What the process involves
It begins with a long conversation about what you actually want, because "I don't like my smile" means something different to everybody. We plan the design, prepare the teeth conservatively, and fit temporaries so you can live with the shape for a while and tell us what to adjust. The final veneers are bonded once the design is right. You are not presented with a finished result you have never seen.
Looking natural rather than obvious
The reason some veneers announce themselves is uniformity: identical teeth, blinding white, all exactly the same length. Real teeth are not like that. Getting subtle variation, appropriate translucency at the edges, and a shade that suits your skin and your age is the difference between people saying you look well and people asking who did your teeth.
Caring for them
Brush and floss normally. Porcelain does not stain the way enamel does, but the gum line and the teeth behind still need looking after, so routine cleanings continue as usual. If you grind your teeth, mention it, because a night guard protects the investment and grinding is the most common way veneers get damaged.
Veneers in Plymouth
If you have been quietly unhappy with your smile for years, a conversation costs nothing and commits you to nothing. Bring photographs of smiles you like. Dr. deFuentes Cutter will tell you honestly what is achievable in your case, including when something simpler would get you most of the way there.
Why patients stay
Dentistry, done differently.
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Gentle, even for the anxious
We hold your hand through it, literally if you want. No judgment, no rush.
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Caring for Plymouth families for decades
Three owners, one standard of care, and over 25 years in Dr. deFuentes Cutter's hands.
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A person, not a call center
Call and you reach our front desk. We answer your questions ourselves.
Good questions
Questions patients often ask.
How long do porcelain veneers last?
Well-made porcelain veneers commonly last well over a decade and often considerably longer. What shortens that is grinding, biting nails or opening things with your teeth, and neglecting the gum line. If you grind, a night guard is the single best protection for the investment.
Will they look fake?
Only if they are designed badly. The giveaway is uniformity: identical teeth, blinding white, all the same length. Real teeth have subtle variation and translucency at the edges. Designing for your face rather than picking from a shade guide is precisely what an aesthetics postdoctorate trains you to do.
Do veneers ruin your natural teeth?
Porcelain veneers require a conservative amount of enamel to be reshaped so they sit flush rather than looking bulky, and that part is not reversible. Composite veneers usually need little or no reshaping. This is exactly the trade-off we walk through before you commit to either.
Should I choose porcelain or composite?
Composite is sculpted directly onto the tooth in one visit, costs considerably less, and is easily adjusted, which suits smaller corrections or trying a shape first. Porcelain takes two visits, resists staining far better and holds its luster for years. Composite bonding is part of Dr. deFuentes Cutter's specialty too, so this is a real choice.
How many teeth will I need done?
Fewer than most people assume. It depends on how wide your smile is when you actually smile, which we will look at together. Sometimes the honest answer is that whitening and reshaping one or two teeth gets you most of the result for a fraction of the cost, and we will say so.
Ready when you are
We're easier to call than you think.
Tell us what's worrying you. We'll take it from there. No scripts, no rush.