Thanks to our new age of technology, almost anything is available online. This means that you can now order things that previously required a lot more effort! Unfortunately, that doesn’t always translate to a good thing. You can even buy porcelain veneers online in a Do it Yourself (DIY) kit!
Obviously, DIY veneers are cheaper than professional ones, but the mere fact that they are not customized to your teeth make them barely worth your dollar.
DIY veneers are very rarely even made out of porcelain, and they are certainly not permanent. You will notice that they typically are not as comfortable, durable, or as natural-looking, as professional veneers.
Here’s how it works: the manufacturer would send you a kit to take a mold of your teeth; you send the kit back to them, and they send you your new porcelain veneers. They may work in a pinch as a temporary substitute, but they are more like a set of dentures than professional porcelain veneers.
Professional veneers typically require two dentist visits. During the first visit, your dentist would take images and measurements of your mouth to make sure that your new set of veneers will fit perfectly and comfortably.
Then, your dentist would remove a very thin layer of the enamel of your teeth. This is to make sure that the veneers lay flush onto the teeth and don’t protrude at all, making your teeth look thicker.
Finally, a mold is taken of your teeth so that your veneers can be made to fit your teeth. A set of temporary veneers would be given to you based on that mold while you wait for the professional set to arrive. The same mold would be sent to the lab by which your professional veneers will be handmade.