A day in the life with IMAGE staffer and beauty content creator Emily O’Neill

Hailing from Edenderry, IMAGE's own Emily O'Neill enjoys slow living when she's not in the office – coffee with her mum, walks with her adorable pups and trialling the latest beauty products, all in her comfy yet stylish attire. Here's her favourite hometown haunts, Irish make-up and go-to outfit at the moment.

Morning

8am

Depending on the day, I usually wake up anywhere between 5.30am and 8am. When I travel to Dublin to spend the day in the office, my alarm tends to wake me from my slumber around 5.30am, but this particular day was a nice slow day so I didn’t get out of bed until 8am. I love a day like this when I don’t have any particular plans and I can do whatever I want.

I started my morning by picking out a comfortable yet stylish outfit. My outfit of choice was the SPANX Air Essentials Tracksuit in a gorgeous ‘smoke’ colour. I am trying to build a wardrobe full of staples that can be mixed and matched and this is the perfect addition to it. It is the softest tracksuit I have ever worn and it washes amazingly too, which is so important as I don’t have time to worry about dry cleaning or hand washing my clothes.

10am

I had a small amount of work to do in the morning so once I was dressed and had popped on a little bit of make-up, I headed into Forj, my favourite coffee shop ever! They have the best coffee and even nicer staff there. I set up my laptop in their window seat (the best spot for people-watching) and got through some emails while I sipped my coffee. My lovely mum joined me too and we had a nice catch-up before heading back home for the afternoon.

Afternoon

12pm

I had some content to record once I got home which I adore doing. Trialling and testing new make-up and beauty products is my way of unwinding and relaxing. Right now, I’m loving the Sculpted by Aimee HydraTint, Kash Beauty Lip Treatment, and Rebeluna Luxe Powder Brush. The trickiest part for me is deciding what top to wear when creating looks and recording videos. The SPANX Air Essentials Half Zip Sweatshirt was perfect for this! The zip neckline is also ideal for avoiding any make-up transferring when taking it on and off.

2pm

Anyone who knows me knows my dogs, Sonny and Luna, are like my children so it is no surprise that they are always a big part of my day. We are very lucky where we live – we have a huge garden for them to play and run around in but they still love getting out past the gate for a walk up the lane or down the canal. Luna loves being by my side when we walk so she will gladly potter alongside me but Sonny has to sniff and investigate everything on his route. They are chalk and cheese! I would usually change into some gym leggings and a fleece for my walks but I have discovered that the Air Essentials Tracksuit is also perfect. Are you starting to notice a theme here? It really is the most versatile and multipurpose outfit in my wardrobe.

4pm

There is no better feeling than coming inside after being out and sitting down to a nice hot cup of tea. Like many Irish households, almost everything revolves around a cup of tea. My brothers were both home on this particular day so it was lovely to sit and chat with them both for an hour or so. I definitely bore them with all of my beauty and fashion chat – I think they know the ins and outs of all of my favourites at this stage.

Evening

6pm

I have an exciting trip to Orlando and The Bahamas coming up which I needed to pack for. The next few weeks are very busy so I took the opportunity to plan my outfits and get a head start on my packing. Of course ‘The Perfect T-Shirt’ from SPANX went straight in! I am already envisioning it with my denim shorts and lots of fun gold jewellery or one of my bias-cut slip skirts and Birkenstocks. It is such a versatile piece and the detailing on the back elevates it too. It is not your standard white T-shirt.

8pm

After a busy day, I was really looking forward to curling up and reading my book before I headed to bed around 10pm. I am currently reading The UnHoneymooners by Christina Lauren. This time of the year, I really enjoy light reads which is exactly what this is. Of course, Luna and Sonny had to get their pre-bedtime pets and cuddles in. Usually, by this time I am in my pyjamas but the AirEssentials tracksuit is probably more comfortable than any of the pyjamas I own so I was reluctant to change out of them.