When the words Luster 1 Hour White first popped into my existence, I was hooked. I am all about instant gratification when it comes to beauty products. For teeth whitening products such as Luster 1 Hour White, one hour is the equivalent of ‘instant.’ Over a decade of staining my teeth with the blackest of black coffee and one hour of my life to spare — why not? Especially since Luster claims to be the first and only FDA-cleared product over-the-counter whitening product. Aside from having government approval, the whole process deemed itself to be easy and fail-proof:

1. Rinse your mouth with Accelerator Mouth Rinse — a rinse meant to speed the process of whitening, all the while feeling like your run-of-the-mill mouth rinse.

2. Brush on Super Whitening Gel on areas in need of whitening. Comes in a white nail polish bottle, which the product claims to be the same stuff used by dentists.

3. Hold the Activating Whitening Light to your teeth for two minutes.

These 3 steps repeated 10-20 times, to result in teeth up to 6 shades whiter in an hour. Of course, the product guide did not fail to mention that the amount of times you must repeat steps 1-3 to notice a difference varies for everyone. You could be finished in an as little as 30 minutes, or you may need the full hour. Given my history with coffee, I needed that full hour. And so it goes, I attempted another round of repeating steps 1-3, another 10 times.

While all of this sounds daunting, it kind of was. The most painstaking step was step number 2 which requires you to apply the whitening gel to each individual tooth that required whitening (in my case, most, if not all my visible front teeth). Application is very much comparable to applying nail polish, only when you smudge, there’s a slight chance it may irritate your gums. Being no fan of pain, I was really careful about where I was applying the gel. Being careful meant that I had to, for two minutes, put on a fake smile, straining my mouth muscles 20 times in an hour.

Despite my efforts to avoid irritation, I somehow managed to get two accidental brushes of the gel on my upper lip. No surprise here, as I am terrible at applying nail polish. Although small brushes to my lip, I did notice the areas itched a little for the following two days. Everyone reacts differently as clearly mentioned in the guide, so if you plan on using this product it’s nice to do so with precaution.

Results of the whitening session were based upon a shade stick with 21 different shades ranging from white (1) to, well…not white (21). I started off as a 5 and ended up a 3 — not quite the 6-shade difference. I took pictures of my teeth before and after the treatment, but found that the results are hardly visible in photos. If you stop me on the street, I’ll happily show you my smile.

Two factors come into play as to why I didn’t achieve the the 6-shades lighter results that Luster 1 Hour promises: It’s possible I wasn’t performing the steps properly — you get tired after running through the same 3 motions over and over again. And for only $39.99 you’re probably getting what you pay for. Teeth whitening treatments that require you to go to a dentist, are much more expensive.

So would I do this all over again? Probably not. Two shades of whiteness don’t seem to justify the hour of repetitive motions. Luster however, does have other whitening treatments that lacks the intense repetitiveness of the 1 Hour White treatment. Also, the fact that it’s the only FDA approved teeth whitening OTC treatment, says a lot.

I’d highly recommend this product to you if you’re on the verge of perfectly white teeth. Or if you’re in the market for anything to whiten your teeth that’s FDA approved. Otherwise, anything you may purchase that you try on yourself may be dangerous. You can find Luster 1 Hour White at CVS, Rite Aid and Walgreens nationwide or online for only $39.99