A lot of my friends are surprised to learn that my crooked smile is my biggest insecurity. They all say "it's not noticeable", "your teeth are fine", but all I see is the overbite and the teeth that stick out because of it. I had braces as a kid, but my orthodontist at the time didn't follow up like he should have, and as a result, I ended up with a smile I'm embarrassed about.
Yes, I could get it fixed, but it would be a purely cosmetic procedure, take years and cost about $12,000, which I would frankly rather spend traveling the world.
All that to say that I am insecure about my teeth, and have spent many years trying to accept my smile as it is. For that reason, I have tried many at home whitening kits, strips and other miraculous toothpastes, only to be disappointed by barely-noticeable results.
So when Smile Brilliant offered me a kit to try, I jumped at the opportunity. My dear friend Emily had just completed her treatment and I was wowed by her results, so I decided to give it a go.
I have extremely sensitive teeth. We're talking, pain for 48 hours after I use whitening strips -sensitivity. So I went with the sensitive teeth kit. It came with:
- desensitizing gel
The teeth whitening ingredients are also vegan and cruelty free, which is always a plus in my book.
The teeth whitening ingredients are also vegan and cruelty free, which is always a plus in my book.
I was a bit stressed out about the process when I first received the kit, but the steps are very easy:
- You make your impressions at home with the play-dough like material provided in the kit, send them in and get your custom fitted trays back in the mail
- Once you have your trays, you apply a thin line of whitening gel in them, and wear the trays for 45min to 3 hours depending on your sensitivity
- After you are done with the whitening part, you rinse it off and repeat the process with the desensitizing gel for about 20 minutes.
Everything is explained in details in the kit, so you can't mess up.
Because it is a little time-consuming, I did my whitening at night before bed and it worked well for me - I just made sure to have my tea & coffee with a straw the next morning (yes, I drink both, hence the need for whitening!).
Because it is a little time-consuming, I did my whitening at night before bed and it worked well for me - I just made sure to have my tea & coffee with a straw the next morning (yes, I drink both, hence the need for whitening!).
- The results are pretty incredible, and I started seeing them right away. Now the teeth do appear brighter at first, and fade back to a more normal looking shade after a few hours into the next day, but over time, the results really are definitely noticeable.
- The whole branding and customer service at Smile Brilliant is fantastic. I had a million questions and they answered every single one of them, offered suggestions and solutions. I also love the fact that they don't make fake promises: they explain the process in depth and how teeth will only whiten up to a certain point. Fluorescent white teeth are not natural and this is not what you will get, and Smile Brilliant is clear about that. The whole idea is to remove stains, and get your teeth as white as naturally possible. They are transparent. Same idea as above, but they really explain their process without outright bashing the competition. Check out this article about why custom-fitted whitening trays are more efficient than other systems like LED activated whitening kits or whitening strips.
Obviously the lighting is a bit different, however I took these pictures at the same hour on a sunny day each time (and I obviously got some sun since I started the process!)
You can also check out more before / after teeth whitening testimonials here.
- The process isn't exactly pleasant, but that's to be expected. You want an affordable, easy at-home teeth whitening solution, you have to accept the steps it takes to get there. The day-after was always the worst for me, since that's when the pain usually developed. The good folks at Smile Brilliant suggested I use desensitizing gel more frequently and let it sit longer, which did help. However, the whitening gel is potent, and will cause some discomfort to sensitive teeth and gums. I found that rubbing coconut oil on my gums right before whitening really helped.
- It is time-consuming. Understandably so. An effective at-home teeth whitening process can't happen in one hour, no matter what other brands will claim. But I found that between life and sensitivity, I wasn't able to do it as fast as I would have wanted to. I needed at least 3 days in between each session, which altered the results a little.
And finally, I have partnered with Smile Brilliant to GIVEAWAY a $139 credit to a lucky reader. Click here to ENTER.
If you can't wait to try it, use code orane for a 10% discount on the Smile Brilliant website.
I received this product for review purposes. The thoughts and opinions expressed in this article are my own.
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