What changes with porcelain veneers?
Porcelain veneers cover the outer surface of the front teeth, so they are good at changing the color and shape you see from outside. Organized by common concerns, it looks like this.
| Concern | After veneers | Limits |
|---|---|---|
| Yellow color, stains | Even, at the brightness you want | If too bright, it looks unnatural up close |
| Small front teeth (peg laterals) | Size and proportions matched | There must be space next to the neighboring teeth |
| Small gaps between the front teeth | Gaps filled | If the gap is large, the teeth look wide |
| Worn or chipped edges | Length restored | Can break again if you grind your teeth |
| Slightly crooked front teeth | Outer shape tidied up | If very rotated, orthodontics comes first |
If color is your only concern, whitening comes before veneers. I consider veneers when whitening doesn't give the color you want, or when you also want to change the shape. I explained why teeth that are too white look unnatural in Front teeth that are too white.
What doesn't change with porcelain veneers?
Veneers cannot move the position of the teeth or the bone. So the following concerns can't be solved with veneers alone.
- Protruding mouth: if the teeth stick out, the more you add on top, the more they stick out. Orthodontics comes first
- Severely crooked or overlapping teeth: forcing the outer surface to line up means a lot of drilling or very thick veneers
- A gummy smile, where a lot of gum shows when you smile, or an uneven gum line: separate treatment such as gum contouring is needed
- How the upper and lower teeth bite together (occlusion) and the shape of the jaw
- Lip thickness and the shape of the mouth
Whether a protruding mouth can be pulled back with veneers is one of the questions I get most often. A detailed explanation is in Veneers for a protruding mouth.
What changes in daily life after porcelain veneers?
Besides appearance, the feeling changes too. For 1–2 weeks after bonding, your front teeth may feel thicker, s, sh, and j sounds may feel slightly slurred, and your upper lip may feel slightly lifted. Most people adjust, but spots that keep catching need to be smoothed.
Veneers that require drilling the teeth can be sensitive to cold for several days to a few weeks, and the gum at the margin may swell for a while. And to make them last, you need to change the habit of biting things off with your front teeth. For symptoms that can appear after bonding, see Sensitivity and gum swelling after porcelain veneers.
What do you look at to make the before-and-after difference natural?
A natural result comes from matching three things — color, length, and proportions — to the face. I look at them in this order.
- Color: not brighter than the whites of the eyes, and matched to the skin tone
- Length: when the lips are relaxed and closed, the upper front teeth usually show by about 1–3mm (this decreases with age)
- Proportions: the central front teeth are widest, getting narrower toward the side front teeth and canines
- Translucency at the edges: the natural-tooth feel where the tip of the tooth is slightly see-through
On top of this, I check whether the line connecting the tips of the upper teeth follows the curve of the lower lip when you smile. If even one thing is off, it shows that something has been done.
How we do it at Wonjin Dental
The veneer Wonjin Dental mainly does is Brinate, which is placed without drilling. If the teeth stick out or there is a skeletal protruding mouth, I don't place them. In that case, I explain ways to move the teeth first, such as MTA partial orthodontics (₩1,800,000) or Seraphin clear aligners (₩2,500,000) (as of September 2026).
When they can be placed, I first sort out whether the change you want is in color, size, or gaps, and decide the number and type accordingly. Wonjin Dental is right by Gangnam Station Exit 1.
Frequently asked questions
Will porcelain veneers change the impression of my face?
When the color and length of the front teeth change, your smile can look different. But your mouth won't be pulled back and your jawline won't change. To change the shape of the mouth itself, you need an orthodontic consultation.
Can people tell I've had veneers?
It shows if they're too white, too thick, or every tooth has the same shape. If the color and thickness are matched to the face and neighboring teeth, they can be made hard to tell apart even up close, but there are limits depending on the condition of the teeth.
If veneers are removed, do the teeth go back to how they were?
With veneers that required drilling, the teeth don't go back to how they were after removal, so something has to be placed over them again. If they were bonded without drilling, the teeth can return close to their original state after removal and cleaning up the surface, but the traces of bonding need to be smoothed.
Do I need to do the lower teeth as well?
For people whose lower teeth show a lot when they smile, brightening only the upper teeth makes the color difference noticeable. In this case, the lower teeth are often matched with whitening, and if the shape also needs changing, lower veneers are considered separately.
