AIBU to think that workmen should offer to take their shoes off in your house?

[Dollslikeyouandme]

I'm a shoes off in the house person, and always offer to take mine off when visiting. It's not because I'm a weird cream carpet visitor slippers freak. But I have carpet, a ds who likes to play on the floor. And a neighbourhood where the streets seem to be covered in dog shit.

I hate asking people to take off their shoes, so usually don't, and just hope they do anyway.

I've noticed workmen never take off their shoes, and lately I've had to have a few people in and around the house and gave been cringing at their boots standing on my bathmat mainly.

I just think shoes on carpets are gross.

Am staggered that some people find shoes so offensive that they would make me take my shoes off if I visited them as a friend! I don't think I would visit very often, they sound like v uptight hosts!

Wanting to assign a class to a preference is both unnecessary and is evidence of latent snobbery by some posters.

And anyway, who the hell of the 'working class', aspirational or otherwise, can afford to keep a parlour for 'best' these days with crazy houseprices?!

To reiterate, I grew up in a shoes on house with a very house proud working class parents but I don't wear shoes in my home and ask that others don't either. I'm a middle class professional, not that it's relevant!!

When we lived in the UK I don't think I ever visited anyone that had a shoes off rule either in London where I've mostly lived or in the country where I spent most of my holidays. Of course if it was wet and you were wearing wellies they came off, but wellies are very much only outside shoes. I remember friends of my parents coming over for supper and taking off their walking boots and putting on ordinary shoes, but that's about it. People just gave their feet a good wipe on the doormat when they came in, and weren't ridiculously paranoid. Plus most of our friends/family have dogs so worrying about shoe dirt seems a bit silly.

Now we live in Canada the norm is to take off your shoes, and I really don't like it. It's irritating always having to bring thick socks to change into, and my feet do sometimes get cold in the winter. In the summer I often suffer from smelly feet and so I find taking my shoes off quite embarrassing. Plus there seems to be a bit of an assumption that you can easily take your shoes off in the most awkward spaces, which given that I wear lace ups most of the time can be a bit embarrassing too. There should be a bench for sitting on, shoe horns and those things you use to pull boots off I think. And for short things like picking up visiting kids it just makes things awkward.

I've not noticed one way or another with workmen, but I would assume they would keep their shoes on.

LOL, the real 'Japanese' Margaret is from Essex.

Again, it's just shoes. No need to have a fit of the vapours over shoes.

But don't you shoes on people not find your feet are more comfortable without shoes on?

I won't wear uncomfortable she's, but I can't wait to kick my shoes off when I get home. When we stay in B & Bs and hotels I kick my shoes off as soon as I get into the bedroom.

I can't imagine cooking/ironing/vacuuming in shoes. I find slippers far more comfortable.

What's confusing me is on one hand posters are saying that they put the comfort of their guest first, so shoes on.

On the other hand they're saying shoes off is over familiar, don't want their guests sweaty feet/socks on their carpet.

Which is it

I quite often kick my shoes off at home but I don't feel comfortable doing so in someone else's house. I like to remain fully dressed while visiting. :)

I don't know if shoes off is over familiar but I certainly don't want skanky socks or feet on display and seeping into my carpet....

We are shoes on, but, like Bunbaker I never wear shoes around the house purely for casual comfort and once the weather gets warner not even in the garden. The rest of the family wear shoes, that's what they like. Guests keep theirs on as generally, unlike me, they do not want to stretch out with feet on the sofa. When we are entertaining I wear shoes too.