Joel F. Levy DDS
2039 Palmer Ave #101
Larchmont, NY10538

NYC Office Joel F. Levy D.D.S.

2039 Palmer Ave.

Larchmont, NY 10538-2483 US

(914) 834-9534

Porcelain Veneers

Porcelain Veneers - Larchmont, NY 10538 Dentist

What makes a smile beautiful? That's a complex question, but some qualities of a lovely smile are immediately identifiable: good tooth color, shape and alignment are a few of the most important ones. If your teeth could use improvement in any of these categories, porcelain veneers could be just what you're looking for.

Recent years have brought remarkable advances in dental porcelain technology. These days, veneers can be made so thin that they can sometimes be bonded directly onto your existing tooth surface. In other cases, a very thin layer of tooth enamel — as thin as the veneer itself — needs to be removed to fit the new porcelain surface and make it look as lifelike as possible. Either way, the results are sure to make you smile.

Welcome to our Smile Gallery. Please enjoy some of our amazing smile transformations.


Sometimes, it takes a traumatic event to help one decide to improve their smile. This patient fractured an existing crown. She decided to replace just the 2 front crowns. It was interesting to find out that the previous DDS had replaced the crowns twice. Still, the result was less than optimal and more importantly, it was not acceptable to the patient.

 
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The goal of esthetic dentistry is to improve the patient's appearance. Often, it requires treating a group of teeth to get the desired effect. In this case, the patient told me right up front, that we were not touching any other tooth except the 2 front teeth. We told the patient that in order to create the ideal smile we would have to balance the sizing and adjust the shade. The patient understood and opted to compromise. We actually, obtained a fairly nice result.


After many years of thinking about 'fixing her front teeth' it was finally decided upon. First step in correcting this less than ideal smile, was to wax up a diagnostic model to the ideal proportions and fabricate a clear plastic stent that would enable us to transfer the ideal to the patient's mouth. This technique is crucial, as it allows the patient to preview the proposed changes to the smile, before it is finalized in the form of porcelain veneers or laminates. Our goal was to complete only the upper teeth, as that is all that time would allow.

 
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The smile here, is distorted due to old restorations which were mismatched, improper gum heights and the need to extract strategic teeth. We were about to embark on a journey to create the smile of her dreams...

 
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Smile creation is about listening to the patient, following the rules of proper smile design and matching the two. This resulted in the creation of a beautiful restoration.

 
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After large fillings, it is common for the nerve in a tooth to die. Often, the tooth will discolor. In this situation, the patient was concerned about the discoloration. We found that the nerve had died. After root canal therapy, we placed a highly esthetic crown to perfectly match the surrounding natural teeth.

 
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The days of having unesthetic blocks of porcelain, restoring teeth are over. With the advent of new ceramics, we can now almost duplicate the natural teeth on either side of a porcelain crown. They will reflect light similarly, have similar surface texture a share the many colors that are often evident in a natural tooth. The same properties of ceramics that allow this to happen, can be employed in ceramic or porcelain laminates. You too can have these types of cosmetic dental procedures done in our NYC office or our Larchmont, New York office.


Our teeth can be the culmination of many years of dental treatment. Having seen the effects of time on old composite resins (white fillings), old silver amalgam fillings and even old porcelain fused to metal crowns. The end result can be quite unsightly, especially if they are in the esthetic zone. New strides in dental materials, with life-like porcelains and highly polishable and durable composite resins, have enabled the cosmetic dentist to recreate a more youthful appearance.

 
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Notice how the shine through of the old silver fillings create a dark look to the teeth, when viewed from the side. We replaced the two premolars with all ceramic crowns, while we added a porcelain veneer or porcelain laminate to the canine just adjacent to the crowns. The cosmetic improvement was spectacular. It really changed this person's smile dramatically.

 
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Another view of the existing restorations as a before photo and compared to the finished beautifully cosmetic improvement of the photo on the right


This fine fellow came in for his 6th month cleaning appointment 2mo. prior to his daughter's Bat Mitzvah. He decided that he was interested in preserving his dentition and if that would make them look better, great, that was an added bonus. So, we had a lot to address. Because he had lost the ability to know exactly where his teeth should be in function, they were continually grinding away. Our job, was to provide a definite stop and add features which would reduce or eliminate the grinding damage on the remaining teeth.

 
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One might look at the dark color of these teeth or the crooked alignment of them as being the main incentive to 'correct' this situation. Actually, the main incentive was that he was slowly grinding away his front teeth and was concerned that they were so short, they couldn't be seen. Since this patient decided against a full mouth rehabilitation, we agreed to restore the function to the front teeth, protect them with ceramic crowns and enhance his smile all at the same time. What we see here is the front 6 teeth with artistically designed temporary crowns. We will crown the additional 2 teeth on the left and apply porcelain laminates to the existing bridge on the right to avoid the replacing of an otherwise functional bridge.

 
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A few features of this patient's condition were that the front teeth were set back behind the lower front edges. This in conjunction with the ground down front teeth (due to grinding) prevented the front teeth from showing when he smiled. So, we extended the teeth and overlapped them, over the lower front teeth and created a favorable style of occlusion (bite) which would protect the edges of the final restorations. The edge of the temporaries have slight irregularities that I added to later. The added length along with the corrected tooth position gave this gentleman a way to preserve his front teeth, make them whiter and last but not least, gave him a wonderful smile makeover that allowed him to smile the whole day of his daughter's Bat Mitzvah. I should know, I was there.

 
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A few more before photos to get an idea of what a destructive habit can do to natural teeth. We are proud to offer our services to the residents of New York City (NYC) and its surrounding areas: Bronx, Larchmont, New Rochelle, Mamaroneck, Rye, Harrison, Brooklyn, Mt Vernon, Queens, Manhattan and more!


This friendly fellow came to us requesting to save the fractured teeth shown in the before photo. We unfortunately were unable to do that. So, we fabricated a strong esthetic bridge to close the gaps and support the remaining teeth. The result was splendid and the patient was thrilled. Now we have to continue to monitor the patent's oral hygiene, as it is easy to slip back into old habits.

 
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From before to after speaks for itself. A solid result with a very happy patient


A fellow dentist, had referred his office manager's mother to us to help her with her concerns. She had an old denture that just made her look much less vital than the woman she was. Add to that, she had a bridge in front that was at the wrong level. So, we fabricated a new denture and overlaid it over the bridge to make it appear even. These photos are not the final pictures. We still needed to finish the left side. However, not a bad result. She was much happier.

 
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This sweet lady walked around like the picture on the left since, she thought that is how it is supposed to be. Her daughter knew better. After we tried the initial setup, we could see we were back on track. The teeth to the right show the existing bridge, which we overlaid with the new appliance. A novel idea, that worked perfectly.


This young woman had a single crown which was done several years prior as a result of an accident. She now wanted to replace it, as it had become unsightly. Mom was told that if we did replace the crown, it might require replacement in a few years as the teeth reach their final positions and growth eases. With her approval, we attempted to improve this young lady's self esteem. The gum height is different, so we recommended a little gum recontouring. At this point they decided not to go ahead with that procedure. Although it is not perfect, it is a great improvement.

 
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Color and vitality were perfect. She was thrilled. I just wish we could have pushed up the gum, just a sliver to make the 2 front teeth appear the same size. It wasn't desired, so we didn't. Patients have the right to decide how far to go. If there is an alternative that does not unduly threaten the result, we try to comply. Happy patients are what we are after.


This gentleman decided it was time to improve his smile.

 
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Sometimes, porcelain laminates are not possible due to tooth position or inadequate remaining tooth structure. Bonded all ceramic crowns are a very esthetic alternative.

 
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This patient was very self conscious about his smile. He was reluctant to show his front teeth. We restored his six front teeth with a porcelain to gold crown, an all ceramic crown and (2) porcelain laminates. Can you tell which is which?

 
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It is almost impossible to tell which material was used in each tooth position. So, I will share with you. Left central is porcelain fused to gold crown. right central is all porcelain bonded crown and the 2 adjacent laterals are the laminates.

 
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Careful selection of materials can assist in getting the best, most esthetic results.

 
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Both of these are after treatment. One happy gentleman.


New Crowns

 
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Above photos are actual patients of Joel F. Levy DDS who have given consent for the use of their photos for this website.

Versatility of Porcelain Veneers

Veneers can be used to improve any of the following characteristics of your teeth:

  • Color — Teeth can become stained by the foods and drinks we like, from smoking, and even normal aging. Veneers are available in numerous shades, from the most natural to the brightest Hollywood white.
  • Size & Shape — Teeth can become worn down from grinding habits, or may not have the shape or size you want to begin with. For example, some people consider rounder teeth more feminine and squarer teeth more masculine. Veneers can be shaped and sized in whichever way is most flattering to your face.
  • Alignment & Spacing — Veneers can be used to close small gaps between teeth or make slight corrections in alignment while improving tooth color and shape.

Limitations of Porcelain Veneers

There are some situations in which veneers would be inappropriate. For example, if you have significantly misaligned teeth or a large gap, orthodontics might be a more appropriate solution than veneers. And if you have lost a lot of tooth structure from decay or trauma (or a particularly severe grinding habit), it might be better to restore your teeth with porcelain crowns that cover the entire tooth.

Creating a New Smile with Porcelain Veneers

The first step in creating a new smile with porcelain veneers is to communicate exactly what you don't like about your smile as it is now. It's a great idea to bring in pictures of smiles you do like, as a starting point for discussion. It's possible to see how veneers would look on your teeth in one of several ways. A model of your teeth can be created over which wax “veneers” can be placed; sometimes acrylic (plastic) or tooth-colored filling material can be placed directly onto your teeth to demonstrate the effect veneers would have on them.

Once the plan has been agreed upon, your teeth will be prepared by removing a small amount of enamel, if this step is necessary. Molds of your teeth will be taken and used by a skilled dental laboratory to create your veneers, and you will receive a temporary set of veneers to wear during the few weeks it will take to create your permanent veneers. When the veneers come back from the lab, they will be cemented onto your teeth.

Caring for Your Veneers

Just like the teeth nature gave you, teeth restored with veneers need gentle brushing and flossing every day. This will remove dental plaque and ensure good gum tissue health around the veneers. Regular checkups at the dental office will remain as important as always to your oral and general health. And keep in mind that as tough as veneers are, they may not be able to withstand forces that come from using your teeth as tools (to open packages, for example) or biting into very hard foods like candy apples — which isn't good for your natural teeth, either! And if you grind or clench your teeth at night, you might be advised to get a custom-made nightguard to protect your veneers — and your investment.

If you'd like more information about veneers, give Joel F. Levy D.D.S. a call at (914) 265-6581.

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