To ask flatmates to put away shoes?

[MortificadoMarkTen]

We have a really small hallway and I live with four others. I only ever have one pair of shoes out at a time but there's about 10 pairs cluttering up the hall and it's getting a bit frustrating - no one ever moves them. Is it really controlling to ask that people only have one pair out at a time and either put the others in their rooms or in a cupboard nearby?

Do you know who's belong to who? When this happened to me I used to dumped them outside of their rooms. They soon got the picture.

I do but they got pissed off about the shoes being moved. I feel like I'm being really controlling but it's winding me up

Buy a shoe rack?

It's really small though. But yes I have suggested this.

Tell them you get really annoyed when they leave their shit everywhere. I hated flat sharing - just keep doing it, or just chuck them up the stairs.

Unfortunately this is just a pitfall of flatshare. You can't stand the muddle and obstruction, they don't care about it. As it's three against one, you won't come out unscathed. You'll be the one in the wrong. It's a bummer.

I think you have to adopt a certain laissez-faire to live in a shared flat harmoniously. I've done my stint of it in my time and managed ok (I'd be one those leaving shoes by the door, I'm afraid) but I was very glad to move into my own place by the end.

This is basically an argument in favour of not sharing space, sigh.

Could you possibly consider it as a measure of the 'worst thing about sharing' being a clutter of shoes, rather than noise, visitors or illicit substances, might be a win. It could be sooomuch worse.

Big wicker basket ? That's my solution to most storage issues

We also use a big wicker basket for storing shoes. It tidies the clutter.

As others said, it could be so much worse, so I would leave it.