For five months after her business opened in 2021, Mirna Lovo sat in her Burnsville studio stocked with dozens of Swarovski crystals and 18-karat gold charms but no clients and worried her business was a failure.

After paying thousands of dollars for training in teeth whitening and tooth gem application, Lovo was eager for her new venture, Pearly Whites MN, to give her purpose outside of being a stay-at-home mom.

While there are now several businesses in the Twin Cities for tooth gems — small crystals bonded to the enamel of a person's tooth using a similar sealing agent to orthodontists' adhesive for braces — and a growing industry nationally, many tooth-gem artists are still struggling to make a living from the practice.

Lovo especially seemed to have initially overestimated Minnesotans' interest in having adorned teeth despite the practice's prevalence online and among young consumers.

But she spent her ample free time applying tooth gems to a pair of fake teeth and posting photos and videos of the sparkling dentures on TikTok and Instagram. That eventually earned her thousands of views and followers and her first client. That client's positive Google review was the spark her business needed.

"There are lots of people here in Minnesota," Lovo said. "It's just about promoting the right way and finding the right crowd."

A lot to learn

Understanding the intricacies of tooth enamel and bone health took months of research and wasn't covered in her initial certification, Lovo said. Those first few months without clients spent practicing — while a little distressing — allowed her to experiment and learn how to make her work last months.

The crystals can last from a few hours to years, depending on a number of factors, including bone density, hygiene, quality of materials used and expertise of the artist applying them.

"They missed out on a lot of key points that are very important that I didn't learn until time just went by," Lovo said of her training. "Practicing on my dentures helped me really gain all the perfection when it comes to tooth gems, and I am a perfectionist when it comes to it."

Tooth-gem artists like Lovo can add just one sparkle per tooth or create dazzling designs with dozens of gems — including symbols and logos — clustered across a client's teeth. The cost generally starts at $50 to $80 for a single Swarovski crystal, but elaborate gem applications can run into the hundreds of dollars.

Though most tooth-gem artists use orthodontist-grade adhesive, the Minnesota Board of Dentistry does not certify or license tooth-gem applications or teeth whitening.

In fact, the organization discourages any oral jewelry because of "considerable potential for plaque accumulation," according to Bridgett Anderson, executive director of the Minnesota Board of Dentistry. There is an even higher risk if the person already has poor oral-hygiene habits.

This aligns with the American Dental Association's recommendation against oral piercings and jewelry which present an "increased risk of negative health outcomes."

The lack of regulation surprised Layla Salim, who started doing tooth-gem applications after being unable to find anyone else to do one for her in the Twin Cities in 2019.

At her clinic in Blaine, Medical Tattoo and Cosmetic Centers of America, Salim offers medical-tattoo services to treat hair loss, scars and skincare concerns. She also works one day a week performing surgeries at a dermatology clinic in St. Paul.

Concerns about the validity of some certificate programs led Salim to spend thousands on training from a California company.

"They were the most reputable company that I found," Salim said. "They had all that information, and they were able to answer all my questions."

After practicing on family members and researching more about what to avoid in placing the gems, Salim said she's still wary of mistakes tooth-gem artists could make without proper training.

"There are ways to cut corners," she said. "If [the gems are] coming from another country, that hasn't been tested for lead, or it hasn't been tested for toxins or anything."

Salim added she prefers to use American-made materials that she feels are more trustworthy, even if not FDA-approved or regulated.

Alejandra Rothfork, an eyelash-extension technician and owner of Bonita Blinks in Minneapolis, started offering tooth gems for clients in 2021. Though she found success promoting the new service on social media, she temporarily stopped doing gem applications because the materials she used weren't lasting.

"Since then, I found a better product that works for me, but it's just really hard to find it because it's really just trial and error," Rothfork said. "Regulations would kind of help both the business owner and the client just have more peace of mind, and then I'm sure that products would become more regulated as well, so you would know where to go."

Lovo said she's heard horror stories of tooth gems gone wrong, like someone ending up in the emergency room with immense pain because an artist used super glue to attach the gems.

"I'm glad that she didn't have to get her tooth taken out or anything like that," Lovo said. "It is sad that some people do ruin it for the whole community."

Rothfork advised consumers to ask artists about the quality and source of their crystals and adhesive and said a certified artist should be more likely to produce a better result.

A luxury endeavor

Purchasing reputable and long-lasting materials can be costly, even in bulk, Lovo said.

She spent the first few months in business slowly collecting the Swarovski gems, which she now buys en masse every two to three months to save costs.

It took 10 months for Lovo to start profiting from the business. Having invested around $4,000 to kickstart Pearly Whites MN added to the pressure to bring in clients, especially as a business that solely offers tooth-gem applications and teeth whitening.

"It's very [profitable], especially now," Lovo said. "I would have never expected that from just teeth whitening and tooth gems, but more of my profit does come from just tooth gems."

Other Twin Cities tooth-gem artists said it can be difficult, or just impossible, to make a living off the trend.

"It's kind of hard to make a full income off of just tooth gems," said Rothfork, who relies on applying eyelash extensions for most of her income. "I don't feel like there's as much demand in Minneapolis as there might be in like California or New York."

Gen Z's fascination with enamel embellishments led to an 85% increase in searches on the social media site Pinterest for tooth gems from 2019-21, according to a "Pinterest Predicts" report. The "#toothgems" tag on TikTok has more than 350 million views, and the same hashtag on Instagram contains more than 500,000 posts.

But oral jewelry is far from a new trend.

Ancient Mayans and Egyptians were among the first to put gems on their teeth. The Mayans cut a hole in the teeth enamel, filling it with colorful stones and minerals, likely for ritual or religious reasons, according to the British Dental Association. Tooth jewelry also has ties to Black culture, like grills that hip-hop artists and rappers popularized in the 1990s. Rapper Nelly even has a hit song about them, 2005's "Grillz."

Many of Lovo's clients want tooth gems solely because of their viral popularity. But she also sees many Somali and Mexican clients who wear the crystals for special occasions like weddings or birthdays.

Two of Lovo's clients, Josie Wicka and Andrew Montez, said the gem application is painless and quick.

"I have barely noticed them," Montez said, pulling his lip down to examine the two clear stones on his bottom teeth in the studio mirror.

Wicka has been visiting Pearly Whites MN for six months, switching her design often. Her current look includes a disco tooth — completely covered with a half-dozen crystals — and a white gold "21" on her lower teeth for her birthday.

"I love doing it because it's the easiest way to change up your look," Wicka said. "You can only do so much with like hair, nails."

"I love anything that's icy and makes me feel extra."