I now Smile Dailey

I did a thing. Like, a big thing. I improved my smile. I always loved my teeth. I never wore traditional braces (but I did do Invisalign in 2002 for one wonky tooth that wasn't just right). I loved my smile. Until about five years ago. I could see in photos that my teeth weren't white anymore. Not just "not white" either but gray. It really changed the way I looked. I recognized it the first time after a fancy event where I was the emcee. I wore a beautiful green dress, and I swear my teeth were the same color. Of course, they weren't green but I promise you they were a shade of gray. THIS IS MY TEETH, PEOPLE. What in tarnation happened?

About two years ago, I started noticing in every photo and every on-camera appearance, I had teeth that had lost their vibrancy. I now was on a quest to change my situation. I went to a few consultations in Little Rock for help. I knew about Dr. D. J. Dailey because of his outstanding reputation as an award-winning dentist and for his work as a cosmetic dentist. My friend and radio personality Heather Brown went to Dr. Dailey for cosmetic work. I spent a couple of appointments just chatting with him. What were my options, in his opinion, for a brighter, whiter smile? He's fairly conservative, so his first line of defense was to whiten them. I did as he suggested but since they weren't discolored from the common things that mar your smile like coffee, tea, or red wine, I wasn't positive it would help. I'm not a coffee drinker; I seldom drink tea and only occassionally have red wine. But Dr. Dailey didn't want me to worry about my situation because every time I met with him, he would say, "we'll take care of this." That gave me the assurance I was in the right hands.

I did try the whitening option; it didn't help. I still had gray-ish looking teeth. I found myself doing the "soft smile" in photos that people do who don't want to show their teeth. I went back to Dr. Dailey and said, "let's go for it." I never in my life had to consider altering my smile, but I chose porcelain veneers. I did NOT want movie star teeth; I told him a thousand times, "I want my teeth." Just the ones I had about 10 years ago. I wanted my shape and the color mine were when I modeled my smile for my general dentist in 2008. It wasn't that long ago that I had a nice smile. Could that smile be restored? Dr. Dailey said without hesitation, "absolutely."

So I took the plunge. I went in for the appointment where the teeth were prepped and readied for my BRAND NEW SMILE. He didn't have to do a lot of prep work but enough that I was in the chair for five hours. (It's a tedious process where I received temporarys that no one even noticed!) Then I came back four weeks later, and voila! That's the smile you see in the photo above. Dr. Dailey did exactly what he said he would do. He made pretty close replicas to match my God-given smile but gave me a better version. I call it my "Smile 2.0." I love it! It gives me the confidence I was lacking with graying, aging teeth.

The older you get, the less satisfied you might be with your smile. Or you never really liked your teeth. So do something about it! Don't be shy. Call Dr. Dailey's office and make an appointment for the consultation. His staff is so great. Any anxiety you have, he already knows what to say to keep you off the ledge. I told him I had PTSD, pre-tooth stress disorder. Before my veneers were ready, I was so nervous! I kept asking him about the color. Dr. Dailey said he knew exactly what would be the best shade for my look and lifestyle. And he was right! They are beautiful, and I am so glad I did this. I wanted a smile that would have me cheesing so big whether I hold my grand daughter or pose with friends. And I do! I'm thrilled! One thing you must know about Dr. Dailey-he's a perfectionist. And you want that in your cosmetic dentist and the airplane mechanic when you fly.

Wonder who's had veneers? Just about any red carpet actor or actress and every reality star who has a pretty smile. Look at Kylie Jenner and Jennifer Garner before and after their veneer transformations. What a difference it made in their appearance. But you don't have to be a reality TV star to consider veneers. Go to his website to see regular folks who had their smiles transformed with Dr. Dailey's artistic flair! Let THE STATE'S EXPERT take care of your smile and you, too, will Smile Dailey!

My clothing and accessories provided by Dillard's Park Plaza, Little Rock, Ark.

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