I don’t know whether it’s just because I’ve been watching more reality TV, or because my disappointment at Snapchat alternating between a filter and real life has reached new heights, but all of a sudden I’ve found myself on a quest to get whiter teeth.
A couple of years ago I found myself in a similar phase and feeling more pro-active and with a few bob to spare, bought a Groupon deal for LED teeth whitening in Westfield White City (ironic). It was an all-round ordeal and one I would not encourage anyone to do, unless you have a particular fondness for sitting in the middle of a busy shopping centre feeling like your teeth are being pulled out one at a time.
So this time round I thought I’d save the public show and try a home whitening kit instead. But do they actually work? Sure my £59 deal gave me whiter gnashers, but could something that costs less and hurts less and doesn’t involve leaving the house really give proper results?
I tried out the Diamond Whites natural charcoal toothpaste and whitening strips to find out.
Diamond Whites Black Edition Paste
The toothpaste is pretty straightforward and doesn’t require you to do anything differently. It feels a bit strange trying to make your teeth whiter with something that’s black, but from just one use, I could see the difference. So much so that I ran through the house saying ‘look at my teeth look at my teeth!’, to which my boyfriend replied ‘cool’ because he’s used to my weird exclamations.
I’ve been alternating between this and my normal toothpaste to make the tube last even longer, but I always use it before going out as it just gives that extra little confidence boost.
Diamond Whites Teeth Whitening Strips
The strips are designed to be used every day for the course of how many you order. In my case, I tried the 2 week supply, which correctly included 14 pouches. Inside each pouch you’ll find a clear top and bottom strip, which are coated in non-peroxide whitening gel. It feels a bit weird when you put them on to begin with, but it helps that they taste minty fresh and you get used to them after 5 minutes or so. Just leave them on for 30-60 mins then brush your teeth to get rid of the gel.
It seems like a bit of a faff at first, but you can build it into your morning routine so it’s really not at all. I’ve been applying the strips first thing in the morning, keeping them on whilst I have a shower and do my make-up, then taking them off and brushing my teeth last.
Results
I’m really impressed with the final results from both products. The strips give the most exaggerated white when you use them consistently over the 2 or 4 week period, and the paste is great for all-round maintenance and upkeep. I don’t have a whitening chart to compare to, but as you can see from the before (left) and after (right) pictures below, they’re a hell of a lot whiter!
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| Results after 2 weeks of use! |
Both products gave immediate results after each use, so it was great being able to see them working and knowing they’d keep working! Guess I won’t be needing all those Snapchat filters now.
Diamond Whites are available to buy at Superdrug. The paste costs £9.99 and a 2 week supply of strips is £22.99 – although they’re on offer for £15.31 at the time of writing. I’m stocking up!!
By Holly Earp
