Words: Gunner Onkst | Photo: Summer Ahartz

It was inevitable. We’ve pierced ears, noses, lips, and even tongues — now people are decorating their teeth.

You can get hearts, diamonds, or even star shaped gems to decorate your mouth, tailored to your personal preferenceand aesthetic. You may want them big and flashy, or small and simple. No matter the size, these gems will add some extra sparkle to your teeth.

The Gem Trend

This flashy trend is nothing new. Teeth accessories have existed as far back as the Mayan empire. Royalty would drill holes in their teeth to replace the gap with jade gems. They have been prevalent in mainstream pop culture since the hip hop era of the 1990s, where rappers and fashion icons alike would adorn their teeth with grillz, rhinestones, and crystals.

Despite its popularity, Deja Smith, the owner of Midwest Gemz, noticed that the Midwest is extremely late to the trend.

“I remember going to New York in 2019, and my friend had gems on her teeth,” Smith says. “I was like ‘What the heck is that?’ She’s like, ‘Girl it’s been around forever!’”

Three years later, Smith found herself in California where she saw her friend putting gems on people’s teeth. Curious about the process, she asked him for one.

“He gave me my first gem. It was a heart on my tooth,” Smith says.

Seeing how happy it made her, Smith knew it was something she wanted to introduce to people back in the Midwest.

Mastering the Craft

Before she opened her business, Smith took online courses to learn the training and technique of applying gems on teeth. What she didn’t expect was the excitement people had once she started tabling at local expos in the Des Moines area.

“I remember my first event,” Smith says. “People were like, ‘I’m next!’ and I wanted to leave right then, but I stayed and worked until ten o’clock at night.”

Each time Smith would finish a design, a new person would appear asking for gems. Smith was a natural at the simple designs and she wanted to learn more.

“After [the event] I started to learn more about the process with different gems, glue, and new designs you can do. I wanted to make my business better,” Smith says.

How It’s Done

Tooth gems are pretty resistant and durable on teeth. Smith ensures this by making sure the teeth are dry, clean, and ready before composite and blue etch.

Composite bonding and blue etch are used quite often in the dental industry. Blue etch is mainly used for fillings and braces, while composite bonding is used to attach chipped teeth and fix discoloration.

Smith puts on the blue etch first to dry the tooth out. Next, she mixes the composite bonding together and smoothly places it on the surface where the gem will be shown.

Finally, she applies it with a cotton swab and mixes it together. Smith also notes that less is more as you don’t want the glue to cover your gems. After the application, Smith sets the glue with a blue light to secure the gem.

Smith is currently taking bookings through her Instagram, @midwest.gemz.

Finding the Right Aesthetic

Jasmine Arroyo, an avid teeth gem wearer, learned what was best for her through experimentation with
different designs. “I would try to get inspo from Pinterest, but sometimes the designs wouldn’t work on my teeth,” Arroyo says. “I would just kind of do whatever felt right.”

Arroyo purchases her gems from Amazon as they offer a starter kit that includes the gems as well as cotton swabs and glue.

Is Teeth Jewlery Here to Stay?

“Gen Z likes to do random shit,” Arroyo says.

She recognizes how short our generation’s attention span is when it comes to trends. But currently, Smith’s business is flourishing. She’s seeing three to five clients each week on top of her full time job.

“It’s another trend that’s coming back,” Smith says. “Everybody is being creative right now especially since Y2K is trendy again. People are becoming more free and risky, and I like that.”