Rachel from Napier — 10 Emax Press veneers, full smile makeover

Real patient story, shared with permission. This patient has consented to Picasso Dental Clinic publishing their experience to help other New Zealand patients. Treatment, material, NZD price, and timeline are accurate to the case archive. Reviewed by Dr. Emily Nguyen, Founding Clinical Director.

Rachel is 49, an HR manager in Napier, and she had a fiftieth birthday coming up the following autumn. Her teeth had not chipped or failed — they had simply dulled and worn over thirty years of coffee, tea, and the odd glass of Hawke’s Bay red, and two upper teeth had drifted enough that they caught the light unevenly in photos. She wanted to walk into her milestone birthday liking the way she looked when she laughed.

She first asked about whitening alone, then realised what she actually wanted was a brighter, more even smile — whitening on its own would not fix the wear and the slight crowding. A Napier private clinic had quoted her in the region of NZD 20,000 for a combined whitening-and-veneer plan across the upper smile. She sent us six photos and a short voice note on a Sunday. We returned a written, itemised NZD quote within 24 hours: 10 Emax Press veneers at NZD 600 per tooth, total NZD 6,000 (May 2026 Picasso price list, 1 NZD = 15,000 VND), with a 7-year warranty, plus lower-arch whitening to match.

The design question she cared about most

Rachel’s whole worry was looking overdone. In her words from the post-trip survey: “I did not want to come back looking like I’d bought a different face. I’m 49, not 29. I wanted teeth that looked like mine on a very good day.”

The pre-trip conversation centred on getting the design right rather than just the price:

• Sequence: whiten the lower teeth first, choose the veneer shade against the brightened lowers, so nothing looks mismatched. We do not match porcelain to teeth we are about to make whiter.
• Shade and shape: a natural, age-appropriate shade with subtle translucency at the edges — not a flat, opaque white. We sent the Turkey teeth explained page so she could see what an over-bright, over-prepped result looks like and why we avoid it.
• Preparation: conservative enamel reduction, kept minimal because her teeth were sound to begin with.

She booked her flights about a month out and timed the trip so she would be home a clear three months before the birthday.

The 10-day trip

The half-shade adjustment on day 6 is the moment she rated highest. “I saw the temporaries in daylight, decided I was being too cautious, and asked for a touch brighter. They changed it before anything was permanent. That flexibility is the whole point.”

What it cost end-to-end

Against a Napier benchmark of NZD 15,000 to NZD 25,000 for a comparable combined whitening-and-veneer makeover, the gross saving was NZD 9,000 to NZD 19,000, and the net saving after travel was NZD 5,050 to NZD 15,050.

She used 6 days of annual leave; the trip caught one weekend on each end.

The thing she didn’t expect

In her words: “I expected the dental side to be the hard part. It wasn’t — it was the jet lag. I flew in tired and tried to make big design decisions on day 2 while running on three hours of sleep. The clinic noticed and slowed me down, and we finished the design properly once I’d rested. If I did it again I’d land a day earlier just to be clear-headed for the Portrait Sitting.”

We have since added a line to the pre-trip pack suggesting an extra rest day before the design session for patients on the long NZ route. Real patient stories like this one are how we find those gaps.

What aftercare looked like back in Napier

Rachel booked her own NZ dentist for a bite-and-bonding check before she flew, so the appointment was waiting when she landed. Her dentist reviewed the occlusion and the gum margins six weeks after the trip and signed the case off. We received the report and filed it.

She was given a simple home routine — non-abrasive paste, a nightguard recommendation given how worn the original teeth had been, and a reminder that the lower whitening would need a top-up in a year or two to stay matched to the porcelain. Her first 6-month check came back clean.

Rachel’s three pieces of advice

From her survey response:

1. “Whiten the bottom teeth first and match the veneers to that. I almost did it backwards and would have ended up with a top row that didn’t match my own lowers.”
2. “Land at least a day before the design appointment. Do not choose the look of your smile for the next decade while you’re foggy from a red-eye.”
3. “Ask for a nightguard if your old teeth were worn down. Mine were, and the makeover only lasts if I stop grinding the new porcelain the way I ground the old enamel.”

See also

• Smile makeover pillar — the design protocol, materials, and NZD pricing.
• Veneer care tips — the home maintenance routine Rachel was given.
• Napier to Vietnam dental travel page — local benchmark and route logistics.

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About this page

Medically reviewed by

Dr. Emily Nguyen

Founding Clinical Director, Picasso Dental Clinic

DDS · Founder and Clinical Director, Picasso Dental Clinic group

Clinical focus: Cosmetic dentistry · Veneers · Smile design

Dr. Emily Nguyen founded Picasso Dental Clinic in 2013 (originally Serenity International Dental Clinic) and led its 2023 rebrand. She sets clinical standards across the group's six branches in Hanoi, Da Nang, Ho Chi Minh City, and Da Lat, and personally reviews cosmetic protocols including the Portrait Sitting workflow for veneers and smile makeovers.

Last clinically reviewed

28 May 2026

Published by

Picasso Dental Clinic

Review policy

Every medical procedure page on this site is reviewed by a named Picasso clinician before publication and re-checked when pricing, materials, or protocols change. Source documents are linked at the bottom of each page.