Top down, Springsteen on and nothing but the open road. Here at IDEAL we’re road trip junkies. Nothing gets our juices flowing more than the thought of fun-filled adventures on the road. However, a road trip demands more preparation than just throwing your things in a car and hitting the road. After all, nobody wants to break down, stuck in the middle of nowhere with no mechanic nearby.

According to research, one of the biggest breakdown causes are flat or damaged tyres. So, to help minimise the risk of becoming stranded, TyrePlus has come up with an ebook aimed at #TyreKnowledge to help you identify any problems with your tyres before embarking on a long trip. In celebration of this handy guide we’ve come up with 5 IDEAL things to check in your car before a road trip alongside examining your tyres.

MAKE SURE YOUR CAR’S ROADWORTHY

Nothing will put a damper on your road trip like breaking down. So first things first, get your car in shape for the rigors of travel. Take your car for a spin before you set off and inspect it and if there are any problems, it will soon become apparent. If your car hasn’t been serviced in a while, then get one done well in advance. Even if all is up to date, it’s still worth going to your local garage and getting an experienced mechanic to inspect all the belts and hoses and windscreen wipers.

Read: How to prepare your car for a family road trip

CHECK YOUR TYRES

As mentioned, before you set out, check your tyres. Low inflation can reduce fuel economy, costing you more in petrol (money better spent on snacks and coffee) and contribute to blow out related accidents. Likewise, running on over-inflated tyres can lead to blow-outs if the tyres get hot . In addition it can cause loss of traction, reduce tyre life, reduce grip and cause irregular wear.

MAKE SURE YOU’VE PACKED EMERGENCY EQUIPMENT

A well-stocked emergency travel/breakdown kit should be kept in the boot at all times. The kit should include a flashlight, jumper cables, extra fluid for your windscreen wipers and oil. And as tyres are one of the biggest breakdown problems, carrying a spare one is essential. In addition, if you’re confident/handy enough to change the tyre yourself without the help of your breakdown service, pack a jack and that special tool to get the wheel nuts off. It’s also a good idea to carry an empty fuel carrier as if you’re within walking distance of a petrol station, filling it up could be enough to get to your next destination, or at the very least, to the next petrol station.

CHECK YOU’VE GOT A SPARE PAIR OF KEYS

According to the AA, one of the biggest breakdown problems alongside tyre damage is key problems; either losing them or locking them in the car. So save yourself the embarrassment of calling out your breakdown cover provider and carry a spare car key in your purse at all times.

DOUBLE CHECK AND TEST YOUR LIGHTS AND HORN

Before you head out on a long journey, it is critical to assure that your lights and horns are working. You should check both headlights and taillights as well as brake lights. Parking lights, turning signals, and license plate light are a few other things to check out when you are testing the lights. And don’t forget to test the horn. Honking it a few times before you set off in celebration is also prerequisite. 

For most of us, the living room is the hub of the home and a place where we spend a great deal of time. From putting our feet up and watching the telly to curling up with a good book or having an afternoon nap, it’s a place where we come to relax. As such, a living room should embody a sense of serenity and be the ultimate household haven; an escape from the toils and turmoil of the daily grind. With this in mind here are 5 IDEAL ways to make your living room more peaceful.

REMOVE CLUTTER

Is your living room full of ‘stuff’ that doesn’t appear to have any proper home? It’s all too easy for this busy space to become cluttered and messy; a dumping ground for the bric-a-brac of everyday life. Indeed, we’ve all been guilty of leaving last weeks newspapers piled up on the sideboard or forgetting to take our half drunken cup of tea back to the kitchen.

Unfortunately clutter can play a huge role in how we feel about our homes and a messy room can leave us feeling anxious and overwhelmed, adding to the stress in our lives. Indeed, a disorganised, chaotic living room is not conducive to relaxation; make no mistake. As such, it’s important to minimise the clutter in our homes.

To create a sense of space and serenity, start by reviewing the knick-knacks and accessories that you have in your living room; remember that less is more and too many trinkets covering every surface of the living room can be overwhelming. And for all of those piles of newspapers and letters strewn all over the place, consider a magazine rack and get into the habit of recycling the paper in it every week. But be warned, if you don’t recycle, a magazine rack itself can become the ultimate clutter collector.

The ultimate way to reduce clutter is to have a place for everything and proper storage should reduce the effort needed to put things away. That said, there’s no harm in having a junk drawer to throw stuff in when you can’t be bothered to be neat and tidy –  you’re only human after all.

ADD SOME PLANTS

When it comes to turning your living room into a soothing place a little greenery can go a long way. Plants can bring a natural calmness to your space; not only purifying the air that you breathe by removing the toxins that linger in houses, but also – as research has shown – making you happy too. Indeed, studies have shown that by having houseplants in certain rooms of your home, you are able to reduce stress, increase positivity, boost your mood and even reduce the risk of fatigue or anxiety. Whilst it may not seem like your plants are having much of an impact on your health, there’s a high chance that they will be, so there’s never been a better time to find some beautiful plants to make you feel more zen.

ADD A MUSIC SYSTEM

If you’re after a simple and effective solution to create a peaceful and soothing living room environment, then consider adding a music system. Indeed, the soothing power of music is well researched and documented. Music can trigger a variety of chemical reactions in our brains that contribute to relaxation; it can reduce stress hormones and stimulate feelings of happiness. In addition, music has loads of other beneficial effects on our physiological functions including slowing the pulse and heart rate and lowering blood pressure. However, it can be quite challenging to find a good music system for your living room. Luckily, Speaker Champion has great guides and ideas on music systems that will help novices and experts alike.  

LIGHT SOME CANDLES AND USE SMELLS

Simply lighting a candle or burning an essential oil is one way to create a peaceful atmosphere in your living room almost instantly. It’s been scientifically proven that candles soothe us and the mesmerising flicker of the flame is the ideal aid for relaxation. Moreover, the power of aroma should not be underestimated  – it can effect your mood almost instantly working on both an emotional and physical level. And if you’re wondering what scented candles or natural oils to burn, then we’re here to help. Essential oils in jasmine and lavender offer a wonderfully soothing scent, both of which have calming properties and making use of them is a great way to transform your living room into a peaceful place.

USE COLOUR WISELY

The right selection of the colour palette can dramatically change the feel and look of your living room. Some colours are naturally more soothing than others. You’ll find it much easier to relax in a room that is decorated in soothing light pastel shades, for example, than one adorned with dark, bold tones. There’s always something to be said for giving a room a fresh lease of life with a lick of paint too. A tin or two could be the key for helping your room to feel cleaner, fresher and more relaxing.

If you’ve never really understood what your credit score is then it’s time you found out. You need to know how the system works because this will, in turn, help you to improve your score and maintain it going forward so that you can get access to credit when you need it most.

You might think that your credit score is different to your credit rating but they’re actually one and the same. It’s a measure of how much risk a lender takes when they give you credit. Risk in this case is how easy or difficult it’ll be to get the money back from you.

The UK Has Three Main Credit Reference Agencies

The UK’s three main CRAs – Equifax, Experian and Callcredit – use scoring scales that range from 0 to 1,000. You’ll only get a score of 0 if you’ve never had credit before as, quite simply, the agencies have no information on you. 

There Are Actually Two Types Of Credit Score

Namely, generic scores and customised scores.

Lenders and businesses use generic scores to assess how much of a risk it is to lend money to you. The three big CRAs can send you your generic score if you ask.

Individual lenders use their own customised credit scores for customers, based on the information they hold on those customers. Specialised lenders, like car credit companies, prefer to use customised credit reports.

Ways To Improve Your Credit Score

If you suspect – or know – that your credit rating could be better, then the good news is that you can do something about it. It helps you to know what information actually goes into creating a credit report; it includes:

• the total debt you owe to all your creditors;
• what types of accounts and credit agreements you have;
• how many late or missed payments you have, and
• how long you’ve had each account – if you’ve had the same debts for longer than intended, they’ll count against you.

These pieces of information reveal what was affecting your credit history at the time it was generated and recorded. They’ll also offer an insight into how you can help yourself. For example, if you’re habitually forgetting to pay your mobile phone bill, even though you have the money, you’re really letting yourself down. Using a direct debit is the way forward here, so you don’t end up getting a call from the provider or even having your service restricted.

Why Do Lenders Need To Know Your Score?

Credit scores have made it easier for lenders to consider applications. Before there were standardised credit scores, lenders used to have to look through each applicant’s history to make a judgement on their reliability. Not only was this very time-consuming, but it led to some lenders making decisions on gut-feeling or even personal prejudices rather than facts. Some applicants, as a result, would be denied credit when they could have serviced the debt well and others would be offered money when they were in fact unable to repay properly.

Using a standardised score means that the decisions are much more objective and fair which is better all round.

Drying fruits is a process that has been around for a long time to help extend the life of a fruit. And while you might think that it is okay to eat dried fruit all the time – they’re still fruits after all – they may not be as healthy as you think. Yep dried fruits are high in sugar content. Now we’re not discouraging you from eating dried fruit. Indeed, munching on them comes with its benefits; it can boost your fibre and nutrient intake and supply your body with large amounts of antioxidants. Indeed, there is nothing wrong with eating dried fruit if consumed in moderation. With that said, here are 5 IDEAL things to bear in mind when eating dried fruit. 

DRIED FRUITS LOOKS SMALLER THAN FRESH ONES

Yes we know we’re stating the obvious – fruits shrink in the drying process. However, one of the most significant risks when eating dried fruits is that you feel like you are not eating a lot. Indeed, since they look smaller than fresh fruits, it’s easy to think you’re eating a normal amount, when in actual fact, you could be eating an entire mango tree. As such, portion control is a must.

CHOOSE THE NO SUGAR-VERSION

Some people dry fruits outdoors to dehydrate them from natural heat. Others use devices that speed up the drying process. Regardless of the process involved, you need to look at what happens once the fruits are ready. Many manufactures add more sugar to sweeten the fruits – avoid these types of dried fruits as they are unnaturally high in sugar. Indeed some dried fruits are double, and sometimes even triple, the sugar content of fresh fruit. 

THEY STILL COUNT AS SOME OF YOUR FIVE-A-DAY

Drying fruits does not remove the vitamin and fibre content in them. As long as they are organic and there was no added preservative, the only thing that is removed when drying fruits is the water content.The process does not remove the nutrients. Drying increases the vitamin and fibre content. And if you like fruits because they contain antioxidants that help cleanse the body, you will still get the same amount with dried fruits. Furthermore, you will still benefit regarding having better digestion, increased blood flow, and an immune system boost. 

THEY FOOD CAN BE GOOD FOR WEIGHT LOSS

While dried fruit tends to be higher in calories than their fresh counterparts, according to Livestrong, if you control portion size, then dried fruit can supply nutrients that might actually help you lose weight. Great!

THEY LAST FOR AGES

Hands up if you’re guilty of buying fresh fruit, placing it in the fruit bowl only to find fruit flies flying around it a week later? The great thing about dried fruit is that it it lasts for a long time. Whether for personal use or for business, if you want to save some money, consider buying wholesale dried fruit which allows you to get the fruits you want at a low-cost. This way, it will be easy to have a portion of fruit everyday. 

We keep reading in the news that we must start saving for our retirement now, while we’re still young. Although it seems like a long way off, it’s actually a sensible idea – if sensible is your thing that is. Most us don’t want to start thinking about paying into a pension pot, but if you do, paying for your retirement will be a whole lot easier, especially if you want to live comfortably. According to the Money Advice Service “to have an income of £20,000 a year in retirement, you would need to put aside roughly £250 a month from the age of 25. Wait until you’re 35, and this figure goes up to a little more than £400 a month”. Scary stuff right.

So, you’re going to spent decades getting up early, going to work and saving for your retirement (that is, unless we end the capitalist society we live). But what do you do when you actually retire? Well luckily it doesn’t have to be full of cliched activities like small gardening projects, slow-paced hobbies such as knitting and watching old reruns of countdown on the telly. Indeed, nowadays the current retirement age of 66 isn’t all that old, especially since many of us can expect to see the other side of 90. As such, many of us still have an long later life ahead to be enjoyed. With this in mind here are 4 IDEAL retirement ideas for making the most out of later life.

EMBRACE YOUR PASSION

Have you always wanted to be an artist but you don’t have the guts to leave your 9-5 and give it a go. Or maybe you have a passion for cooking and have always dreamt of training as a chef. Or perhaps you’re longing to be your own boss and to see where an entrepreneurial idea might lead, but don’t have the finances behind you right now. Then do it when you retire. Embracing your passions is a marvellous thing to focus one’s attention on in later life and is a chance to give those long-repressed dreams an actual go. 

INVEST IN A HOLIDAY HOMES

While this one depends on that aforementioned pension pot, since you’ve been working all your life, isn’t it time to go on holiday – perhaps forever? If by the time your retire, you’re lucky enough to own your own home, but have always dreamt of living by the seaside or in the countryside, then why not sell up and follow that dream?  Many older people look at Lake District holiday lodges for sale in order to escape cities and towns to enjoy the tranquility and utter beauty offered by more secluded natural vistas. Holiday lodges, static homes and shared complexes in these destinations also benefit from a real sense of community, bringing together people of a certain generation into new groups of friends. Holiday homes aren’t necessarily going to break the bank either; they’re often offered on a shared basis so that you’re able to dip in and out of upkeep responsibilities.

WORLD TRAVEL

Everyone’s heard of the retired couple who remortgaged their home to up sticks and travel the world. And hopefully, we’ll be right behind them come retirement age. Indeed, after a lifetime of working, retirement should be the big payoff and what could be bigger or better than exploring the entire globe?

VOLUNTARY WORK

Hands up if you feel time poor right now? We feel you and we’re not the only ones. Half the population reckon they are time poor, with three quarters of Brits saying they are too stressed to have a good time and 40 per cent stating they spend most of their time working and juggling household chores. Unfortunately, this means that many younger people can be deterred from volunteering because they feel like the don’t have the time. While it’s important to volunteer at all ages, when you retire and have more time on your hands, the ability to volunteer and help others gets a little easier. Now we’re not telling you not to volunteer when you’re young, just that you can do more of it when you retire. 

Here at IDEAL we’re often asked to recommend a good hotel. And although this may seem straight forward, it’s a question fraught with difficulty. Everyone’s different, with a diversity in taste, price point and idea of what or what isn’t ‘essential’. Some prefer quirky and unique boutique hotels, others a luxury five star hotel with all the amenities to boot. However, while we adore most hotels, especially those that have cloud-like beds and spa-like bathrooms, sometimes staying at a hotel can be the wrong choice, especially if you like to have your own space and a bit more freedom. With this in mind, here are 5 IDEAL reasons to choose a holiday rental home over a hotel.

SAVE ON COSTS 

With the average hotel room rate across the UK exceeding £100, one things for sure – hotels are expensive. However, one way to save on hotel costs is to book a rental house, which, when compared to booking a hotel can be amazingly cost effective. Indeed, if your sharing the cost of renting a holiday home, we’ve seen great deals for as little as £20 per person per night – you could barely get a hostel for that. Also, having a kitchen at your disposal can instantly cut your costs and add to the fun factor of a holiday. You can stock up on food, snacks and take as much wine and prosecco as you can carry. Even if you go out in the evening, you can make breakfast, lunch and midnight snacks, which will save some serious pennies. And the money you save can be used on other holiday activities such as taking a boat ride, going on a cooking class and so much more; in turn making your holiday more memorable. 

A HOME FROM HOME

Renting a house offers you privacy and the amenities of a regular home, but still with that sense of adventure of being somewhere new. Moreover, sometimes the four walls of a hotel room can feel a little confined, whereas a holiday home gives you space to spread out. Yep, you can kick back, relax and treat it like your own home. Which brings us to our next point…

MAKE YOUR OWN SCHEDULE

You can create your own fun, in your own time. You don’t have to get up in time for the hotel breakfast if you want a lie in. Indeed, you can get as much sleep as you need (you’re on holiday after all) safe in the knowledge that breakfast will still be there after a late start. You don’t have to be disturbed by the hotel staff cleaning your room. If you fancy a midnight snack, you don’t have to order outrageously expensive room service or raid the mini-bar to stop your tummy from rumbling. If the bars shut, you can take the party home instead of going back to a hotel room and renting a movie that you didn’t want to see in the first place. Moreover, the hosts of holiday homes are often flexible with check-in and check-out times. Yep, with a holiday rental your free(er)to make your own schedule and do things in your own time.

THE CHOICE IS ENDLESS

Whether you want to embrace the countryside with luxury cottage rentals, breathe in the fresh sea air with a beachside villa, or stay in a highrise in the middle of a mega metropolis, there are a plethora of holiday rentals available to suit all tastes. Indeed, with holiday homes there’s something for everyone. Moreover, each property offers a stay that feels more unique and personalised; something that identikit hotel rooms can’t offer.

EMBRACE & COOK LOCAL PRODUCE

A stroll around a food market should be on every visitor’s holiday hit list. But what’s the point of looking if you’re not some cooking? However, book yourself a holiday rental with a kitchen you’ll be able to cook and experiment with the gorgeous local produce you see at the market. What’s more, you’ll be supporting the local economy instead of giving the money to rich hoteliers restaurants.