Author: Igor

Liverpool is a city home to the Baltic Triangle, a world-famous independently-run street food and drink market located at the edge of the city centre. While the Baltic Triangle is a hugely popular area for locals and tourists to enjoy, there are many other hidden gems across the city too. Various restaurants and cafes in Liverpool have been able to create a name for themselves in the industry as unique and delicious. 

Whether you’re a Liverpool regular, a one-off visitor or someone who is curious, we’ve collated the top hidden gems in Liverpool for you to read over and possibly visit yourself.

Below is a list of five deliciously unique restaurants and cafes that we love. 

Down the Hatch

Also known as Seitan’s Basement, Down the Hatch (DTH) is a vegan and vegetarian restaurant that encourages its customers to fill up their boots and stuff their faces as their portion sizes are enormous. It gets almost all 5-star reviews from foodies who eat there since it offers food that’s a little different to the rest. Primarily, Down the Hatch offers customers veggie and vegan junk food that is sure to impress – plus as the name implies, this hidden gem is located underground. While we can’t promise the food will taste better considering the location – it’s a place not be missed when visiting Liverpool. From pulled-jackfruit burgers to loaded mac and cheese – you ultimately can’t go wrong with a meal from DTH!

Bar Bodega

Liverpool’s long-standing and well-loved cocktail basement bar and restaurant is a hit with Liverpool locals and visitors. It’s located beneath a new city centre development from RWinvest, L1 Boutique. The beautifully designed building is home to the unique bar as well as countless apartments that house students and residents of the city. Bar Bodega regularly hosts cocktail masterclasses and can host events too. It’s great to start your night out or go for a late-night party venue. Plus, it’s available for private hire if you want to have your birthday bash here or anniversary get together. 

Mother Espresso

Home to some of Liverpool’s best coffee, Mother is a known name across the city since it does yummy lattes and food too. Open seven days a week and offering veggie and vegan options, the café is a great spot for students looking for a quirky place to study or even friends wanting a place to have a chat. Often, small business events and talks are hosted here. If the delicious coffee isn’t enough to convince you to go, their toasties and full English breakfast should. It’s a must-visit if you’re in Liverpool for a few days.

Yard and Coop

Chicken lovers unite for Yard and Coop, an underground restaurant dedicated to fried chicken and waffles. Sitting right in the city centre, not too far from your retail therapy, Yard and Coop is a unique yet affordable place to try. The restaurant is a late-night spot offering cocktails and drinks but also offers mouth-watering desserts and meals too. If you’re someone who loves to indulge in junk food, Yard and Coop is the place to be. 

Lovelocks

An independently-owned and run coffee shop, Lovelocks offers customers freshly ground coffee, food and various vegan options. They source all of their food from local farmers and certainly know how to bake a beautifully tasting cake. Any chocolate lover would dream of indulging in their chocolate fudge cake. However, there are countless soups, breakfasts and lunches on offer too. It’s the perfect spot after you’ve shopped till you drop, or even for a quick bite to eat with your work friends while on lunch. Don’t pass up the opportunity to visit a real café run by real people that is homely and good value for money!

Do you consider yourself handy? With home improvement projects spiking during the recent lockdowns, it’s likely more and more of us do. DIY sales soared over summer – but are you looking after your tools and equipment like a professional would? 

More than a mere matter of pride, efficient toolbox organisation can keep expensive items in top condition and make every job easier. If yours is currently a frustrating mess or you’re just getting started, read our top tips below on how to introduce some much-needed order.  

    Image via Unsplash

Have a clearout (and clean-up)

From our wardrobes to our garages and even fridges and freezers, better organisation often starts with a clearout. Remove every last item and take stock of what can stay, what can go, and what can be grouped together.

Freeing up space will make rifling through tools less of a time sink. Make sure to clean up drawers and compartments before putting everything back in its rightful spot.   

Label key sections

Next up is categorisation. If you have a large toolbox with multiple sections, it’s worth creating a clear labelling system so you’ll know where to find everything at a glance. You’ll also be less likely to put bits back in the wrong place over time that way.

Possible categories could include hand tools, power tools and accessories, depending on the kit you have available.  

Use containers for small items 

What about all those smaller bits and bobs that seem to end up in every drawer and pocket no matter what you do? Much like a kitchen larder for spices, invest in a selection of clear tubs to keep loose items like bolts, nails and screws together. You’ll want to label these too to avoid getting confused and mixing them up.   

Order tools by weight

Most larger toolboxes will have multiple layers. If yours does too, it’s logical to store heavier items like power tools at the bottom, medium-sized tools like hammers and wrenches in the middle, and all remaining lighter bits at the top. 

Organising tools by weight reduces the risk of a toolbox toppling over. You’ll also be less likely to damage lighter tools – or hurt yourself – when putting items in or taking them out. 

Insert tool foam

Tool foam sheets are a smart solution for keeping items from sliding around on the move, as well as making them easier to visually distinguish. They’ll reduce bumps and scratches too – though you’ll likely need to custom-cut yours to suit your equipment. This process shouldn’t be too tricky with a good quality utility blade in hand, however.

They say a tidy desk promotes a tidy mind – and the same goes for your toolbox. Follow the tips above to make every job a breeze and ensure the best possible results.

 

Traveling is one of the most eye-opening and memorable experiences that someone can have, but it is also one of the most perfect ways to start learning a language. If you’re going traveling soon but don’t know how to use it to your advantage in terms of progressing your language skills, make sure that you try some of these 5 tips to ensure that you can master your desired language while having the time of your life on vacation.

Image via Unsplash

Don’t Be Afraid to Talk to Natives

One of the worst things that you can do when trying to learn a new language is not having enough practice of speaking to native speakers. It can be embarrassing to try and speak in a language that you aren’t completely used to or confident with, especially to people who are 100% fluent. A good thing to remind yourself of is that you don’t need to be perfect when speaking to natives. They will understand that it is not your first language and will also appreciate that you are making the effort to speak to them, rather than expecting them to speak your language in their own country. By speaking to native speakers, you can practice pronunciation, intonation and possibly even make some new friends to regularly practice speaking with. 

Avoid Headphones

A key way of mastering a language while you’re traveling is to avoid wearing your headphones at all costs. By doing this, you will be able to hear constant conversations happening around you and may even pick up on new vocabulary. If you’re always listening to other’s conversations, you can get a good grasp of pronunciation and intonation, as well as providing yourself with free listening exercises. A good way to test your listening comprehension is to listen to conversations and attempt to translate them in your head to test how much you would really understand in a real-life conversation.

Take Study Books with You

Just because you’re traveling, it doesn’t mean that you can’t bring your normal study books with you. There are elements of learning a language that are impossible to master with just speaking to natives alone – they require hard studying. A great example of this is grammar and tense. In Spanish, for example, there are different words that carry the same meaning, such as words meaning ‘to be’: ‘ser’ and ‘estar’. The differences between ser vs estar can be confusing – they completely depend on sentence context, and most likely won’t be fully understood by speaking to natives alone. If you’re finding yourself sitting in a hotel room waiting for a restaurant reservation or a taxi to the airport, have a quick look over your study books to make sure that the information stays fresh.

Immerse Yourself in Media

There is nothing more overwhelming than going to a different country and finding yourself surrounded by magazines, books, TV shows and movies all in a foreign language. If you want to master a language though, you must try to embrace this scenario rather than hiding away from it. Pick up the magazines and use them as a reading comprehension exercise. If you see words that you don’t understand, it never hurts to ask someone nearby what it means – assuming they can speak English of course! You may also find that movie theaters play English language films but provide subtitles in their language, meaning that you can see a new blockbuster and learn translations at the same time!

Record Newly Learned Vocabulary

When you’re in a country that predominantly speaks the language you’re learning, you can be certain that you’re going to learn lots of new vocabulary and cool new sayings that you’ll want to remember for your studies. However, if you learn this new information on a morning while speaking to natives, you most likely won’t remember what the new information was when it comes to the evening of the same day. It is vitally important that you note down new information and new vocabulary as soon as you learn it, either in a journal or in a note app on your phone. 

Learning a language while you are traveling is arguably one of the best possible ways to master that language quickly. By being constantly surrounded by it, you will be able to learn all sorts of new information and tips and tricks that you never knew existed. Make sure that you make the most out of your travels by following these tips to continue your language studies while on your travels.

If you have a garage you no longer using, you are not alone. In fact, according to a recent study by US households, only 15 percent of homeowners with a garage use it to park a car. For the remaining 85% of homeowners who have a garage, the most common use is storing things they no longer have need.

Intentionally repurposing your garage for better use can make your home more comfortable and valuable.

Of course, a garage conversion is different for everyone, but most successful garage conversions are spare bedrooms, home offices, home gymnasiums, movie lounge, and apartments.

If you don’t have a car or prefer to park it in the driveway, you can easily turn a cluttered garage into stylish space.

Here are some solid ideas that will stir your creativity:

Home Office

Transforming a garage into a home office is one of the easiest conversion options.

The complexity or simplicity of the office depends on the desired atmosphere and the type of work performed. Basically, you need electrical outlets and an internet connection.

If you have an expensive laptop with important files and you need to spend countless there, the garage door must be properly insulated from cold and moisture.

You will need to install an insulated garage door if you don’t already have one. Not only do you save unnecessary electricity costs, but you can also make your home office more convenient.

Noise is another important factor to consider. Of course, you want your home office to be as quiet as possible. To accomplish this you need a garage door opener installer.

You should also include space-saving storage solutions to improve your organization.

If you can’t get more natural light in your garage, you should install garage doors with transparent door panels.

Playroom

As your family grows, your house will become more crowded.

If your garage is suitable, you can turn it into a children’s space, where they can play, paint, and basically have fun without disturbing the rest of the family.

The main thing is to make the room as child-friendly as possible, which means that you need to update the garage door opener. If you use the garage as a playroom, it is important that children cannot open the garage door.

Don’t forget to cover your floors with high-quality rugs so that your little ones can safely play on.

Spare Bedroom

If you like to party but do not have enough room for guests to spend the night, you can convert your garage into a guest room.

Before decorating, make sure the room is insulated to keep guests warm.

You also want to make sure it doesn’t contain pests.

Depending on the room, you may only need a lick of paint and a comfortable bed to make guests feel at home, or you may need to invest in a rug.

Home Gym

If you lead an extremely busy life it can be difficult to spare time to go to the gym. Most people want to stay in shape, but the distance to the gym and membership fee discourage them.

If this sounds like you or you just want to exercise privately, you can turn your garage into a gym.

Converting your garage into a gym can be as simple as just getting a few weights, setting up a punching bag, and maybe add an exercise bike.

As with a home office, the simplicity or complexity of a home gym depends on your budget and fitness goals.

You don’t necessarily have to have all the expensive machines to start with, the main thing is to have a separate exercise room.

All in all, there is a lot you can do with an unused garage. So, why let the place go to waste when you can make it a vital part of your home?