A personalised treatment plan that brings together the right cosmetic steps for your goals — built on a healthy foundation and mapped out realistically, one considered stage at a time.
A smile makeover isn't a single procedure — it's a tailored treatment plan that combines individual cosmetic and restorative treatments, each with its own cost, chosen to work towards the changes you'd like to see. It might bring together teeth whitening, composite bonding, porcelain veneers or crowns — or just one of these. Because it's a plan rather than a set package, it always begins with a comprehensive assessment of your teeth and gums, and it's sequenced sensibly over time rather than done overnight. At Whitehorse Dental, 129A Canterbury Road, Blackburn, Dr Melissa Huang has more than 20 years' experience planning combination cases for local patients. Consultations are available in Mandarin, Cantonese, Teochew, Shanghainese and English, and Saturday appointments are available. Results vary from person to person, so the plan we prepare is grounded in what's genuinely achievable for your teeth.
| Component | What it addresses | Indicative Australian guide |
|---|---|---|
| Teeth whitening | Discoloured or dull teeth | From a few hundred dollars |
| Composite bonding | Small chips, gaps, reshaping | ~$200–$600 per tooth |
| Porcelain veneers | Shape, shade & gap concerns | ~$1,200–$2,800 per tooth |
| Crowns | Rebuilding heavily worn or broken teeth | Varies — assessed per tooth |
Figures are general indicative Australian ranges only — not our fees, and not a quote. Your written plan and estimate follow your assessment.
As a prevention-first practice, we don't place cosmetic work over an unhealthy mouth. A smile makeover starts by making sure your teeth and gums are sound: a check-up and clean to see where things stand, any gum disease treatment that's needed, and any fillings to deal with decay come first. Only once that foundation is healthy do we sequence the cosmetic steps. It's not the glamorous part of a makeover, but it's what helps the results look natural and last — and it's why we treat the process as careful, staged planning rather than a dramatic overnight change.
Because a makeover combines several treatments, the planning matters as much as the treatments themselves. We take it in clear stages:
Teeth whitening. Professional whitening lifts general discolouration and is often the simplest first step in a makeover. It's non-invasive and, as a general Australian guide only, tends to start from a few hundred dollars. Whitening fades over time and benefits from occasional top-ups.
Composite bonding. Tooth-coloured resin is used in bonding to repair small chips, close minor gaps or reshape a tooth in a single visit. As a general Australian guide only, bonding is often around $200 to $600 per tooth. It's more conservative than veneers but can chip or stain and is typically refreshed every few years.
Porcelain veneers. Thin custom shells bonded to the front of teeth, veneers address shape, shade and gap concerns together. As a general Australian guide only, they commonly range from about $1,200 to $2,800 per tooth. Importantly, veneers are irreversible — a layer of enamel is permanently removed to place them — so they warrant careful thought as part of the plan.
Crowns. Where a tooth is heavily worn, broken or root-treated, a crown rebuilds it with strength as well as appearance. Like veneers, crowns involve permanently reshaping the tooth, so they're recommended where there's a restorative reason, not for appearance alone. Cost is assessed per tooth.
Blackburn is a settled, professional community 16 kilometres east of Melbourne's CBD — in the 2021 Census the median age was 41 and the median weekly household income was $2,065. That suits how we approach a makeover: as a considered, planned decision rather than an impulse. It's also a suburb with a large and long-established Chinese-Australian community — 17.7% of Blackburn residents reported Chinese ancestry in 2021, rising to 26.2% across the wider City of Whitehorse, where it is the single largest ancestry. A makeover is a multi-step decision people often like to talk through with family, so consultations at Whitehorse Dental are available in Mandarin, Cantonese, Teochew, Shanghainese and English throughout treatment — not just at the front desk. From our Canterbury Road practice we care for patients across Blackburn, Blackburn North and South, Box Hill, Nunawading, Forest Hill, Mitcham and Vermont South. Both Blackburn and Laburnum stations sit on the Belgrave and Lilydale lines a short walk away, there's on-site parking, and Saturday appointments make a staged plan easier to fit around work.
We're upfront about what a smile makeover can and can't do. Results vary from person to person, and they depend on the health and starting condition of your own teeth — so we plan around what's genuinely achievable for you rather than a fixed idea of how a smile "should" look. Some components are reversible and low-commitment, such as whitening; others, such as veneers and crowns, permanently alter the tooth and can't be undone, which is why we take time over those decisions. We won't rush you or promise a specific outcome. Instead, we set out the options, the trade-offs and the upkeep, and help you make informed choices at each step. A no-obligation consultation is the right place to weigh all of this up. Call (03) 8838 8820 to arrange one.
Whitehorse Dental is at 129A Canterbury Road, Blackburn VIC 3130 — easily reached from across the eastern suburbs by train or car, with on-site parking. If it's been a while since your last visit, your first visit is a relaxed place to start, and weekday and Saturday appointments make a staged plan easier to arrange. Call us on (03) 8838 8820 or book online to arrange a smile makeover consultation — there's no obligation to proceed.
There's no single price for a smile makeover, because it isn't a single procedure — it's a tailored plan combining individual treatments, each with its own cost. As a general Australian guide (not our fees), professional whitening tends to start from a few hundred dollars, composite bonding is often around $200 to $600 per tooth, and porcelain veneers commonly range from about $1,200 to $2,800 per tooth. Your plan might use one of these or several, so the only meaningful figure is the written estimate we prepare for your specific plan. The process starts with a comprehensive examination (ADA item 011), after which we set out each recommended step and its cost in writing before anything begins.
It depends entirely on which treatments are involved. Whitening on its own can be relatively quick, while a plan that includes bonding, veneers or crowns is usually staged across several appointments over weeks or months. A makeover is deliberately not an overnight change — we sequence the steps sensibly and give you a realistic timeframe as part of your written plan so you know what to expect at each stage.
Common components include professional teeth whitening, composite bonding, porcelain veneers and crowns, chosen to suit your goals. Just as importantly, a makeover also involves any groundwork your mouth needs first — a check-up and clean, and treating any decay or gum concerns — so the cosmetic steps are built on a healthy foundation. Each component has its own page on this site with more detail.
No. A smile makeover is tailored to you, and many people only need one or two treatments to address what's bothering them. Part of the planning process is working out the smallest, most sensible combination of steps that suits your goals, your teeth and your budget — not adding treatments for the sake of it.
That varies by component, and we're honest about it. Whitening fades over time and needs occasional top-ups. Bonding can chip or stain and is usually refreshed every few years. Veneers and crowns are long-lasting but are irreversible — enamel is permanently altered to place them, and they will eventually need replacing. We talk through the upkeep and lifespan of each step so you can weigh it up before committing, and results naturally vary from person to person.
Yes — this is central to how we work. Before any cosmetic step, we make sure your teeth and gums are healthy, treating any decay or gum disease and completing a check-up and clean first. Cosmetic work placed over an unhealthy foundation tends to disappoint, so a smile makeover always starts with getting the fundamentals right.
Generally not for the purely cosmetic parts. Whitening and veneers, being elective and cosmetic, are usually not rebated by private health funds. Some restorative components — such as a crown placed for a clinical reason — may attract a rebate under major dental cover. We can help you check your specific cover and give you the ADA item numbers for each procedure so you can confirm with your fund.
Yes. Consultations at Whitehorse Dental are available in Mandarin, Cantonese, Teochew, Shanghainese and English. A makeover is a considered, multi-step decision that people often like to think through with family, so being able to ask questions and weigh up options in your first language throughout treatment makes a real difference.
You start with a comprehensive consultation, with no obligation to proceed. We assess your teeth and gums, listen to what you'd like to change, and set out a realistic, staged plan with written costs. Whether and how you go ahead is entirely your decision — a makeover only works when it's genuinely planned around you.