Porcelain veneers
Veneers designed around your face, not a catalog.
Digital smile design, a trial smile you can wear home and porcelain layered by a master ceramist in Sausalito.
Overview
A good veneer case begins long before any tooth is shaped. We study full-face photographs and short video of you speaking and smiling, because the right tooth length depends on your lip line, not on an average. Dr. Moreau then designs the new smile digitally and has it milled into a temporary trial smile you can wear and show to people you trust.
Once the design is right, preparation is conservative. Many cases need only half a millimeter of reduction, and some need none at all. Final veneers are layered by hand in feldspathic or pressed ceramic, so light passes through the edges the way it does through natural enamel.
What is included
- Smile design consultation with photography and video
- Digital design and a wax-up model of the proposed smile
- A removable trial smile to preview shape and length
- Conservative preparation under local anesthetic
- Hand-layered porcelain veneers from our partner ceramist
- Bite adjustment, a night guard and a two-week review
Digital smile design, step by step.
Three technologies let you see, test and approve your veneers before a single one is made.
A 3D scan instead of impression putty.
A slim handheld wand captures about 6,000 frames a second and stitches them into a full-color model of your teeth and gums in under four minutes. No trays, no gagging, and we can review the model with you on screen straight away.
- Time in chair
- About 4 minutes
- Sample accuracy
- Within 20 microns
- What you see
- Color 3D model, same visit
Your new smile, designed on your own face.
Dr. Moreau aligns the scan with full-face photography and a short video of you speaking. Tooth length, width and edge shape are mapped to your lip line, then shown side by side with your current smile so you can ask for changes before anything is made.
- Design time
- About one week
- Revisions
- Included until approved
- What you see
- Before and after on screen
Wear the design home before you decide.
The approved mock-up is printed and transferred to your teeth as a thin, removable resin trial smile. Wear it to dinner, look at it in daylight and ask the people you trust. Porcelain is only ordered when it feels like you.
- Trial visit
- About 60 minutes
- Worn for
- One evening to a few days
- Removal
- Painless, no enamel change
Timings and accuracy figures are sample values for illustration. Suitability for veneers is confirmed at your consultation.
How it works
Four calm, clearly explained stages from first conversation to final result.
Design
Photography, video and a 3D scan feed a digital design of tooth length, width and edge shape.
Preview
A trial smile is placed over your current teeth so you can see, feel and approve the design.
Prepare
Teeth are shaped minimally and fitted with polished temporaries that follow the approved design.
Place
Final veneers are bonded, your bite is refined and a protective night guard is fitted.
Why patients choose it
- Natural translucency
- Layered porcelain reflects light like enamel, avoiding the flat white look of mass-produced veneers.
- Stain resistant
- Glazed porcelain resists coffee and wine staining far better than bonding or natural teeth.
- Predictable
- You approve the trial smile before we begin, so the final result holds no surprises.
- Durable
- With a night guard and regular care, porcelain veneers commonly last 12 to 15 years or more.
What shapes your fee
Starting from a sample fee of $1,800 per tooth. Every plan is quoted in writing before treatment, with insurance estimated where it applies.
- Number of teeth
- Most smiles involve six to ten upper teeth, depending on how wide you smile.
- Ceramic type
- Feldspathic porcelain costs more than pressed ceramic but allows finer layering.
- Preparation
- Crowded or darkened teeth may need aligners or whitening first.
- Bite health
- Clenching or grinding may require bite work before veneers are placed.
“Dr. Moreau redesigned my trial smile twice until it felt like me. Friends say I look rested, and no one guesses veneers.”
Porcelain veneers: common questions
Modern veneers need very little reduction, often less than the thickness of a fingernail. Because some enamel is usually removed, veneers are considered a permanent choice.
Veneers look artificial when they are too white, too long or too uniform. We design shape and shade around your face and preview everything with a trial smile.
Typically three to five weeks from design to final placement, across three main visits.
Yes. Single veneers are more challenging to match, so our ceramist often visits the studio to shade them in person.
Often paired with
Teeth whiteningShade-matched in-studio whitening and custom take-home trays for an even, natural brightness.
Invisalign clear alignersDiscreet straightening planned in 3D, with fewer visits than you might expect.
Crowns and root canalsComfortable root canal therapy and ceramic crowns designed to blend in, often in the same week.
Ready to talk about porcelain veneers?
Share your goals and we will plan the simplest path to a result that looks like you. Results vary; your dentist will advise what suits you.
Rated 4.9 by 612 patients. Most PPO plans welcome.