What constitutes a beautiful smile?

Everyone wants to have a beautiful, enviable smile. We all want to be told our smile is one of our best features, but often we take our teeth for granted. Sometimes the imperfections we are born with are what make us beautiful, but some imperfections can be frustrating and seem unattractive. And sometimes we create the imperfections ourselves, forgetting to floss and clean and take good care of our teeth, resulting in a smile that isn’t quite so nice. We all know what a bad smile looks like, but what makes a smile ‘beautiful’? Below are some of the reasons.

• Symmetry
This is one of the most important factors for a beautiful smile. This doesn’t mean all your teeth have to be perfectly the same as their corresponding partner, but it is important that the two upper front teeth and a few to each side are as symmetrical as possible. Microsurface tooth structure and shape detail can help create the impression of balance.

• Smile line and gum line
Ideally, both of these lines should follow the curvatures of the lips, with the biting edges of the top teeth following the line of the bottom lip and the gum line following the upper lip. Curved smiles create a more youthful appearance than a flatter smile line and there should be no more than 2 to 3mm of the gum showing when you smile.

• Smile width
A smile width shows the natural progression from the front to back teeth, showing an appropriate amount of teeth for an aesthetically pleasing smile. In a wide smile, it can look a little bit like there are too many teeth and any dark restorations in the back teeth can be a distraction. In a narrow smile, most of the back teeth and side teeth are in shadow, making the front teeth more obvious and look a little big and bulky.

• Embrasures
These are the little triangular gaps between the teeth. These “cut outs” help separate the teeth so they don’t look like piano keys. These should be only tiny between the front teeth, gradually becoming larger further back in the mouth. These tend to be larger in younger people.

• Golden and tooth proportion
There are guidelines for the exact proportions of each tooth, with the recommended width to height ratio for the two front teeth 0.7:1. The golden rules of proportion are an ideal ratio of the visible widths of the upper front teeth. Although proportion isn’t as obvious, it can contribute to a more sparkling and symmetrical smile.

The above guidelines are only some of the things that make a smile aesthetically pleasing. For more information, or to find out about smile makeovers and how to cosmetically enhance your teeth, check out Brisbane dentists, Smile Artistry. They deliver dental care for the whole family, from general check-ups to cosmetic procedures.

So, if you want to makeover your smile, book a consultation with Smile Artistry today.