A primer on smile design principles for people without a dental background. These are a compilation of the most important factors that determine whether your teeth and smile look pretty or not so pretty. It should be useful for persons considering cosmetic dental work.

1. SMILE DESIGN PRINCIPLES
Carlos Boudet, DDS

2. Smile Design Principles
I created this document in an effort to educate my patients about
this factors that affect the beauty level of the teeth in the smile
area and therefore the smile itself.
Most individuals can recognize a great smile when they see one,
but may not know the details or reasons why that smile looks
great.
These “smile design principles” can help you evaluate your teeth
and smile, and may help you communicate with your dentist
about any concerns you may have about your smile.
The following is a brief summary of a few of the most important of
these principles.

3. Central Dominance
The central incisors are the two front teeth in the middle.
They are the biggest and widest teeth and are the most noticeable
when you smile, so if the dentist does a good job designing the
shape, size and other characteristics of these two teeth, the rest
of the teeth are easier to design.
An example of why this becomes important is seen in the case
where the patient has big centrals and a large gap between the
teeth. The patient wants to close the gap with veneers or
crowns.

4. Central Dominance
Some dentists will do as the patient asks, but that will result in the
two front teeth looking very big and not very esthetic.

5. Central Dominance
A more esthetic result would be achieved by closing the space with
orthodontics and crowns in just a few months and keeping the
teeth a normal and more pleasing size.

6. Golden Proportions
This is a principle that has its origins in ancient times.
One of the most well known examples is the picture called “The
Vitruvian Man” which shows how the ideal human proportions
relate to geometric measurements..

7. Golden Proportions
The same principles apply to the size and shape of the teeth in the
smile with the ideal size of the centrals, laterals and canines
appearing to have a golden proportion of 1.6 to 1 to .6 and the
central to have a length to width ratio of 10 to 7

8. Symmetry
Symmetry is an important concept to follow as we compare the
right and left sides of the face and smile. You could not have a
beautiful smile if your teeth looked different on the left than they
look on the right. Here the right central looks different.

9. Symmetry
Something as simple as the appearance of one central next to the
other (Central Dominance and Symmetry) can detract or
enhance the appearance of the smile. After the right central is
fixed, the smile looks much better.

10. Axial inclination
The teeth need to show a slight inclination towards the back as
they go back in the arch as illustrated by the lines in this
picture.

11. Smile line
The Smile line is an imaginary line created by the incisal edges of the
teeth when a person smiles. An ideal smile line should follow the
curve of the top of the lower lip and makes the smile very pleasing

12. Gingival Display
The amount of gingival tissue that shows when you smile is called
gingival display, and if the gingival display is excessive, this can
result in a smile that is less pleasing very often called a gummy smile

13. Gingival Line
 TheGingival Line is an imaginary line created by the teeth where
they touch the gums. This line should be even, with the level of the
centrals and canines slightly higher than the laterals. When the
gingival line is uneven, it results in an unaesthetic smile.

14. Tooth Shape
Tooth shape also influences the beauty of a smile. Teeth can be square,
tapered, ovoid, peg shaped, etc… Choosing a shape that
compliments the shape of the face, the gender (male or female) and
age of the patient should be factors in designing the smile.

15. Interproximal Contacts
If the contact between the teeth is too close to the edge, the teeth will
look very tapered and there will be dark areas in between the teeth
that the gums cannot fill. Making the contact too low can cause the
teeth to look square.

16. Smile Width
Smile width is the ability of the teeth be seen from corner to corner of
the smile. When the arches are narrow, a dark area called the buccal
corridors is seen in the corners of the smile that detracts from the
smile.

17. Shade
Teeth that are very dark in shade, or that have different shades in the
smile area attract attention to the fact that there is a difference in
color among the teeth and do not allow a smile to look pleasing

18. Smile Design Principles
There are other guidelines that we can use to design a beautiful smile,
but I have mentioned the most important ones.
If this document helps you achieve a nice result that you will be happy
with in the process of obtaining cosmetic dental work, then I have
achieved my goal.
If you have any questions about smile design or any other dental
concerns, you can always reach me by calling my office.
Carlos Boudet, DDS DICOI
Website: http://www.boudetdds.com
Phone: (561) 968 6022