A THRIFTY woman has demonstrated how she makes her own teeth to avoid forking out a fortune for a new smile.
Lacy Meeler, from the US, revealed she had to take drastic measures after being left with a gap in her smile.
According to the mother, she was given an estimate of an eye-watering £5k to fix her broken front tooth.
Although Lacy explained that she does have an appointment pencilled in at a dental school where the costs would be lower, this isn’t until May – and she’s desperate to have a temporary fix until then.
To avoid having to walk around with a gappy smile, the money-smart mum has been making DIY teeth at home – recently sharing a tutorial on this on TikTok.
Showing off her old DIY tooth online, Lacy said: ”The fake tooth will start to turn yellow after you eat.”
According to Lacy, she needs to replace the fake gnasher every two weeks or so, and she uses special moldable teeth beads – which you can find online for less than £5.
To make the fake tooth, Lacy first placed a cup of water in microwave for a minute, before chucking in a small handful of the beads and waited them to become clear.
”Now that they’re clear, you’re just going to mold them into the shape of a tooth,” she shared in the now-viral video, which has racked up over 2million views.
Once she had placed the molded tooth inside the gap at the front, Lacy took a huge gulp of cold water to set it in place properly.
Although she noted that it was ”easy peasy”, it’s important to remember that this is not a permanent solution – but rather, a temporary fix.
She went on: ”It doesn’t have to be perfect -because I guarantee, most people aren’t even going to notice it.”
[bc_video account_id=”5067014667001″ application_id=”” aspect_ratio=”16:9″ autoplay=”” caption=”I got Turkey teeth a year ago & they’re so wonky I look like I’ve got 3 three front gnashers – take my hell as a warning” embed=”in-page” experience_id=”” height=”100%” language_detection=”” max_height=”360px” max_width=”640px” min_width=”0px” mute=”” padding_top=”56%” picture_in_picture=”” player_id=”default” playlist_id=”” playsinline=”” sizing=”responsive” video_id=”6361787971112″ video_ids=”” width=”640px”]While some reckoned the DIY tooth didn’t ”look natural”, the mum insisted it was ”better than no tooth at all”.
Answering viewers’ questions, Lacy claimed that she can still enjoy hot drinks, including coffee, without the temperatures affecting the mold.
The mother also added that the removal process, which she does twice a month, doesn’t hurt.
”I share this because I know I’m not alone and people sometimes need help to get through till they can get to the dentist,” she wrote.
‘Dental care is a luxury nowadays’
Since being posted on the platform – where Lacy shares content under the username @lacy_learns2luvherself – the clip has touched the hearts of many.
More than a whopping 600 people flooded to comments to thank the mum for bravely sharing her struggles – and helping those in a similar situation.
”this is sweet of you to demonstrate this to help people. not everyone can afford dentist appointments,” wrote one person.
”Dental care is a luxury nowadays. If this works for you then good on you! It does look good,” another chimed in.
”This is actually so sad,” thought a third.
”The things we take for granted. I’m so sorry you’re dealing with this,” said a viewer.