Veneers are thin shells of porcelain or composite bonded to the front of your teeth, changing their shape, colour, and apparent alignment. Done well, nobody notices the veneers; they notice you look better. Done badly, everybody notices.

Dr. Wes Prepchuk provides veneers at Midpark Dental, planning each case from photographs and a digital scan taken here so you see the proposed result before anything is prepared.

• Teeth permanently discoloured in a way whitening will not lift, including tetracycline staining and single dark teeth after root canal treatment
• Worn, short, or uneven front edges
• Misshapen or noticeably small teeth
• Chips, and old discoloured bonding that keeps failing
• Small gaps, where the teeth are otherwise well positioned
• Mildly rotated teeth, by reshaping the visible surface

• Genuinely crooked or crowded teeth. Invisalign moves the tooth and removes no enamel. Veneers disguise its position and destroy enamel doing it. Dr. Prepchuk is a certified Invisalign provider with more than 200 aligner cases, and if your case can be corrected that way we will say so.
• Active decay or gum disease. Cosmetic work placed over either fails, so those get treated first.
• Heavy grinding, unless it is managed. Porcelain fractures under sustained load, and a night guard is not optional.
• Teeth with very little enamel left. Veneers bond to enamel and bond poorly to dentin.
• A structurally compromised tooth, which needs a crown covering the whole tooth rather than only the front.

Porcelain veneers

Made in a laboratory and bonded at a later appointment, usually across three visits. Porcelain replicates the translucency of natural enamel better than any other material, resists staining, and typically lasts fifteen years or more with proper care.

They cost the most, and they require the enamel preparation described above.

Composite veneers

Built directly onto the tooth in a single appointment. They cost considerably less, need little or no enamel removed, and can be repaired or added to rather than replaced. They typically last four to eight years and they stain over time, so heavy coffee, tea, or red wine consumption shortens that.

Composite is a legitimate treatment in its own right, not only a stopgap. It is also the sensible way to preview a change in shape before committing to porcelain, because almost nothing has been removed if you decide against going further.

1. Consultation

We examine the teeth and gums, take X-rays, and look at your bite and whether you grind. This is also where we tell you if a less invasive treatment would achieve what you want.

2. Design

Shape, length, and shade are planned from photographs and a digital scan, taking account of your facial proportions and how your smile sits when you talk. You see the plan before anything is prepared.

If you are also whitening, whiten first. Porcelain and composite do not lighten later, so the veneers are matched to your final shade rather than your current one.

3. Preparation and temporaries

For porcelain, enamel is reduced under local anaesthetic and a scan or impression goes to the laboratory. You wear temporary veneers for one to two weeks. Treat these as your trial run: if they feel too long, too bulky, or not quite right, say so, because changing the plan now is far easier than after the porcelain is made.

4. Fitting

Each veneer is tried in and checked for fit, margin, and shade before anything is permanently bonded. Once you are happy they are bonded and your bite is adjusted.

Composite veneers skip the laboratory stage entirely and are completed in one appointment.

Veneers do not need special products, but the margin where the veneer meets the tooth is where problems start, so cleaning matters more than it does on a natural tooth.

• Brush twice daily with a fluoride toothpaste. Avoid heavily abrasive whitening toothpastes, which dull the surface of composite.
• Floss daily, carefully, around the margins. Decay at the edge is the most common reason a veneer needs replacing.
• Wear a night guard if you grind. This is the single biggest factor in how long porcelain survives, and we make custom guards here.
• Wear a sports mouthguard for contact sport. A night guard and a sports mouthguard are different appliances made for different jobs; you may need both.
• Do not bite your nails, open packaging with your teeth, or chew ice.
• Keep your six-month checkups so margins can be checked and polished before anything fails.

Veneers are priced per tooth, and porcelain and composite sit at very different price points. A single veneer to correct one dark front tooth is a different proposition from six or eight across the smile line.

Midpark Dental follows the Alberta Dental Association Fee Guide, so every veneer is priced against a published provincial standard you can check. We give you a written quote covering every tooth in the plan before anything is prepared.

Purely cosmetic veneers are rarely covered by insurance, though a veneer restoring a broken tooth sometimes is. We submit a predetermination so you know which applies, and payment plans are available.

Do veneers ruin your teeth?

No, but porcelain veneers change them permanently. Placing one removes a thin layer of enamel, and enamel does not grow back, so that tooth will need a veneer or crown from then on. Composite veneers remove little or nothing. It is a commitment rather than damage, and it is why we discuss the alternatives first.

Does getting veneers hurt?

The preparation appointment is done under local anaesthetic. Some sensitivity to cold in the days afterwards and while wearing temporaries is normal and settles once the veneers are bonded.

How many veneers will I need?

It depends how many teeth show when you smile fully. Some people show six, some ten. Doing too few leaves a visible mismatch at the edges, which is why we plan from photographs of your actual smile rather than a standard number.

Will they look fake?

Only if they are made to. Natural teeth are not uniform, not perfectly white, and not all the same length. Veneers designed around your face read as your own teeth.

Can I whiten veneers later?

No. Neither porcelain nor composite responds to whitening gel. Whiten first and have the veneers matched to that shade.

Veneers or Invisalign?

If the problem is the position of your teeth, Invisalign is the better answer because it moves them and removes no enamel. If the problem is shape, colour, or wear, veneers address what aligners cannot. Some plans do both: straighten first, then veneer fewer teeth than would otherwise be needed.

What happens if a veneer chips?

A composite veneer can usually be repaired directly. A porcelain veneer generally needs replacing. Either way call us rather than leaving an exposed margin, which invites decay.

Book a veneer consultation at Midpark Dental by calling (403) 201-7999 or booking online. We are at 201-239 Midpark Way SE, open from 7:00 am until 8:30 pm Monday through Thursday, and 8:00 am to 3:00 pm Friday. New patients are welcome, no referral is needed, and parking is free.