If I told you it was easy to make the decision to close my gap after 34 years of having it, I'd be lying. I've definitely shed some tears as I've watched it slowly disappear. I always loved the gap between my two front teeth. Both of my parents have one, so when I looked at mine, I saw lineage. I saw something inherited. Something that made my smile distinctly mine. And in many cultures—including my own—a gap between the front teeth has long been seen as beautiful. So my gap

I feel like sharing my Smile Journey would be incomplete without talking about something very unglamorous but very real: How the hell am I paying for all of this? 😂 Price was one of the biggest barriers—alongside my fear of the dentist—that kept me from pursuing braces until I was 34. And there's an astrological irony in that which isn't lost on me. In traditional medical astrology, the teeth, bones and skeletal structure are associated with Saturn and Capricorn—themes of st

I have a confession to make: the first time I tried to go to the dentist to start my smile journey last fall, I left. And when I say left, I mean I physically could not make myself go through with the appointment. I had made the appointment. I had gotten myself there. I had spent days mentally and emotionally preparing myself for it. But once I was actually faced with sitting in that chair and allowing someone to examine my teeth, the fear took over. So I went home. For a lo

Getting braces at 34 has been one of the more unexpected chapters of my personal style—and self-image—journey. Of course, I expected my teeth to change. That's the whole point, right? What I didn't expect was how many other things would shift alongside them: the shape of my face, the way strangers perceive me, the conversations I have with my students, and even the stories people share with me about their own smiles. Here are five things I definitely didn't expect when I deci