Alix Earle Said She ‘Instantly Regretted’ Getting Veneers. Here’s Why I Still Paid Tens of Thousands for Mine Andrea LavinthalWed, June 3, 2026 at 12:02 PM UTC 0 Andrea Lavinthal before and after her new veneers.Credit: Courtesy Michelle Rose; Courtesy Andrea Lavinthal In 2005, I went to the bathroom of my dentist&x27;s office in midtown and did the one thing the dentist told me not to. I smiled at myself in the mirror and looked at my teeth. Or rather, what was left of them.
Alix Earle Said She ‘Instantly Regretted’ Getting Veneers. Here’s Why I Still Paid Tens of Thousands for Mine
Andrea LavinthalWed, June 3, 2026 at 12:02 PM UTC
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Andrea Lavinthal before and after her new veneers.
Credit: Courtesy Michelle Rose; Courtesy Andrea Lavinthal
In 2005, I went to the bathroom of my dentist's office in midtown and did the one thing the dentist told me not to. I smiled at myself in the mirror and looked at my teeth. Or rather, what was left of them. I was midway through having porcelain veneers placed on my front four teeth to replace old composite bonding that kept chipping, which meant I was at the point where my natural teeth had been filed down to corn-sized nubs. Yes, it was as horrifying as it sounds.
I don't remember the dentist mentioning that part of the process. Nor do I remember her giving me a preview of what my teeth would look like with the finished veneers (they turned out fine, but not great). And I definitely don't remember her telling me that veneers don't last forever and two decades later, I might experience something called “leakage,” which happens when the bonding material that seals the veneer to your tooth deteriorates and creates a gap at the gumline that becomes discolored from saliva, bacteria and food. Well, it did happen — and now it was time to replace my veneers.
Since I got my veneers done 20 years ago, the technology has improved both the process and your results. Unless your natural teeth are significantly stained or damaged, veneers now require minimal prep, meaning no more nubs. Plus, scanning technology, digital mockups and 3D printing allow dentists to create super-customized results with incredible accuracy. Still, veneers have a reputation problem.
Last year, Alix Earle posted an emotional video on TikTok where she said she “instantly regretted” getting veneers. And other influencers, reality stars and even A-listers get dragged for having bulky, bright-white “chiclets.” So while I was hesitant to embark on my own veneer journey, I didn't really have a choice (remember, “leakage”). The key to getting the smile of your dreams starts with the dentist. If you're going to spend tens of thousands of dollars to cement porcelain into your mouth for the next 15 or so years, you need to trust the person doing it.
After an extensive Instagram deep dive, I landed on Dr. Stephanie Dumanian, of Park Lex 60 Dental. She's a self-described perfectionist with impressive credentials that include continuing education courses in aesthetics (she's even taken courses for lab technicians to understand exactly how it works on their end), incredible before-and-after photos, and an enviable collection of headbands. (I respect a woman who knows how to accessorize scrubs.)
My original plan was to veneer only my front six teeth, which I assumed would give me the most bang for my buck. But I quickly learned that when it comes to cosmetic dentistry, a “deal” can sometimes mean the practitioner isn't being fully honest about what they can — and can't — accomplish.
In my initial consultation with Dr. Dumanian, she asked what I wanted to achieve with new veneers — an enhanced version of my existing smile or something totally different? (I said I wanted to look like Gisele, duh.) She was able to pinpoint that what I wanted was to make my smile appear wider. My palate is so narrow that another dentist once charmingly described my smile as a “black hole” because you can't see beyond my front teeth when I smile. She presented two options: embark on a painful-sounding orthodontic procedure to open up my palatal suture or get a full set of 12 veneers. I immediately ruled out the first but I wasn't sold on the second either. If all but my front four teeth were healthy and looked fine, why would I mess with them?
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She explained that the more veneers she does, the further back in my mouth she can go, meaning she can actually alter the profile of my smile and give me the wider look that I want. And while doing the front teeth is more cost-effective, I would get what she calls a “seam of a smile,” meaning while my natural teeth change in color over time, the veneers will stay the same. Plus, only doing my front six teeth would create proportional issues, so the results wouldn't look harmonious. In other words, there was no bang for my buck to be had here.
It all made sense, but I still wasn't ready to commit to the next appointment. I couldn't stop thinking about how Alix Earle said, “If you're thinking about doing anything to your teeth, this is your sign to not do it and to embrace your natural teeth. Don't follow my lead on this one.” However, Earle also admitted that her decision was “made pretty fast and I just didn't think it all the way through, or, I think, talk to enough people,” whereas my approach was anything but rushed. I had made multiple trips to Dr. Dumanian's office for dozens of photos, scans, and moldings of my smile and bite. She used a liquid composite to create an initial mockup for me to try out in the office. I took a few photos and while I liked how aligned and white the teeth themselves looked, something felt off.
With the liquid composite "trial smile"
Credit: Courtesy Andrea Lavinthal
I explained that “something” was bothering me but I couldn't explain exactly what it was. Dr. Dumanian somehow took my incredibly vague feedback and made a few tweaks to the image of my trial smile. As soon as she sent it to me I knew we nailed it. The next step was a provisional set of veneers that I wore for two weeks while her ceramist hand-crafted the porcelain version.
The veneer process requires time and patience. You should plan for around five appointments in total that look something like this: 1. A consultation to discuss what you're hoping to achieve with your smile 2. Measurements, photos, scans, etc. 3. Prep teeth and put on provisionals 4. Remove provisionals and put on veneers 5. A follow-up to make sure your bite is properly aligned and no additional modifications are needed.
Andrea Lavinthal teeth before and after teeth
Credit: Courtesy Park Lex 60 Dental
As for the cost, it's a lot. Depending on where you live, porcelain veneers can run $1,500 to $5,000 per tooth. I asked Dr. Dumanian why veneers are so expensive. “You're paying for the doctor's knowledge and artistic eye because anyone can deliver a veneer, but do they understand what works and what doesn't aesthetically?” she said. She also explained that a lot of the cost is the time and expertise that goes into the renderings, which she compared to an architect's blueprint. “They don't just tell you what they're doing then let your imagination run wild. They're going to ground you with a rendering, which requires additional time and steps.”
Then there's the quality of the veneers themselves. “All of my veneers are handmade and hand-layered by a ceramist, and that's what's going to give it that natural, more translucent look,” says Dr. Dumanian. Five appointments and all my money later, it was worth it. Like most people getting a cosmetic procedure, my goal was to look like me, only better. My smile is noticeably wider and brighter, but you wouldn't know immediately that I “did something.” In fact, my coworkers were like, “you have veneers?!” when I told them I was writing this story and that's exactly what Dr. Dumanian wants to hear.
My new smile
Credit: Courtesy Andrea Lavinthal
“That's how you know you have good veneers,” she says. “ It's the same way you get a nose job. How do you know you had a good nose job? No one can tell. How do you know you had a good boob job? No one can tell.” And I'm happy to share that when I had to go to the bathroom mid-process with my tiny teeth exposed, the hygienist handed me a mask and said, “Don't take it off.” This time, I listened.
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Published: June 3, 2026 at 03:09PM on Source: MORNING MAG
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Alix Earle Said She ‘Instantly Regretted’ Getting Veneers. Here’s Why I Still Paid Tens of Thousands for Mine Andrea Lavinthal...
