SmileTime teeth whitening kit
Buy now £39.99, Smiletimeteeth.com
- Steps: Apply daily for 15 mins
- Duration: 6 days
- Rating: 8/10
The process
Each box comes with six applications of teeth whitening gel, which are applied to the mouth tray (attached to the LED light) and popped into your mouth for 15 minutes (or 30, if you have strong enamel) at the end of your usual oral hygiene routine.
Admittedly, this step is pretty uncomfortable. However, it lasts for such a short amount of time that it’s barely worth the complaint. There’s a lot of residue from the gel, but nothing that can’t be rinsed out. It also doesn’t taste anywhere near as bad as we feared.
While we try to avoid getting our hopes up for immediate results from any beauty product, we did have high expectations from this one, considering it’s only meant to take six days. Some lucky users online rave about a difference in their teeth in just 24 hours, but this wasn’t the case for us.
The results
It took until day four to see a real change. At that point, we saw a marked improvement in brightness. Included in the kit is a results chart on which you can identify the initial shade of your teeth and track your progress. Even though our own results weren’t that radical, it was still interesting to hold paper proof that something had happened.
SmileTime offers a subscription service for whitening gel top-ups, allowing you to continue your journey past the initial six-day run. Second time was the charm for us; after 12 days, our teeth were two shades lighter. There’s a limit to how much a non-dentist authorised product can transform your teeth, but this eliminated more discolouration than anticipated.
The necessity of this second round of whitening was mildly frustrating. The kit is already pricier than most teeth whitening options (mostly thanks to the LED lamp) and most of these kits deliver enough to complete a 14-day course of treatment. Obviously, not everyone needs more than 6 days – and some may need more than 12 days – but we were still disappointed that the kit’s promises fell flat.
Regardless, it got the job done, eventually. With lighter, less stained teeth, our tester felt far more confident in her smile. The ribbon on top of the whole experience? It’s also all vegan-friendly.
The verdict: SmileTime teeth whitening kit
Our first impressions weren’t great, but this kit really does grow on you. It’s deceptively easy to use and works well with any existing oral hygiene routines as you can just slip it in at the end.
Given enough time, the SmileTime teeth whitening kit can lift surface stains with just 15 minutes of mild discomfort a day. For anyone hoping to continue their transformation, you can also purchase additional whitening gel to reuse the trays and light in the future. It isn’t the cheapest whitening option out there, but the clinical aesthetic does make it feel a lot more thorough.