Everyone wants to have a smile that lights up a room. For some people, that means straightening their teeth or correcting an over or underbite. For others, it means whitening their teeth to make their smile sparkle. Some people are lucky enough to have straight, white teeth but an unsightly gap can hold back their smile from being picture-perfect. For closing a small gap, many people opt not to go with a dentist and save money by correcting their gap themselves. We have made many retainers for customers who have moved their teeth themselves using Goody Bands, Ortho Fill, or other orthodontic bands to close a gap between their two front teeth, otherwise known as diastema.
Using Goody Bands
At Sporting Smiles, we always recommend having a dentist involved any time you are moving teeth. However, we understand that sometimes going through a dentist can be expensive. Not everyone has the spare cash to cover those costs. If you are using the bands to close your teeth, you will need to get a retainer after the gap has been closed. This is the same for any proper orthodontic procedure. It is necessary to hold the teeth in place and prevent them from shifting back into position. If you use Goody bands or other bands to close a gap and you don’t use a retainer afterward, the teeth will want to spring back to their original location. This is called elastic memory.
Custom Retainers
Our custom retainers are perfect for anyone who is looking to correct a front gap themselves and save money in the process. At a much lower cost than a retainer from a dentist, you can get a snug, custom-fitted retainer. A custom-fitted retainer will preserve your newfound smile perfectly. Our retainers require taking an impression of your teeth with one of our Self Impression Kits and sending it into us. When taking a self-impression, you need to make sure that your teeth are in the position that you like. This means taking the impression once your teeth have shifted and the gap is completely closed. You can see how to make a proper impression in our video. Ensure that you do not have the bands on when taking the impression. If you do, the retainers will have the impression of the bands, making it fit poorly. While the retainer is being created, be sure to maintain the position of your teeth. Do not close the gap any further or let your teeth shift out of place.
