AIBU not to remove shoes in the home

[Illtellyouwhatswhat10]

Generally we don't ask guests to remove their shoes, and my SIL said she doesn't either. We both agreed that when you go to the trouble to put on a nice outfit, it's ruined when you have to take off your footwear. SIL added that as we both have tiled/wooden floors in downstairs room why would you ask guests to, anyway?

And another thing, it's often not nice to be barefoot in someone else's home (at least in your own place you have your own slippers) and I'm aware that some people may feel conscious about smelly feet/odd unsightly feet/verrucas. Even if hosts provide slippers, would you want to wear something that's been worn by someone else?

We are a shoes on in the house family. Also have pets and therefore accordingly will be germ riddled - but none of us are ever ill with sickness etc. Dd 1 didn't have a single day off from primary school and dd2 only a couple but for headachey reasons.I think it's all a bit precious. Basic hygiene in the kitchen is important but the floors aren't worth getting uptight about.

Wow so you all seriously make guests coming for dinner or to a party take their shoes off and put some of your slippers on before coming into your houses?!? Quite frankly that's weird and uptight!

I take my shoes off in my house but would never expect others too. Asking people for an evening do and them making them remove their shoes is really odd and controlling! Imagine if you were made to do that in a restaurant. I've never been to dinner at someone's house where people remove their shoes.

I think it's quite a middle class thing - dh's very posh relatives never take their shoes off and would be quite confused and affronted is handed a dodgy pair of slippers at someone's house.

Oh no, not this again.

If took all the Mumsnet threads on shoes indoors and put them end to end, they would stretch to Saturn, a couple of times round the rings, and back again.

Perhaps the reason for light coloured carpets being popular is that modern/new build homes have smaller rooms and that beige carpets create a feeling of space.

But even if shoes are removed it seems to me that everyday life - with children - involves tea/food/wine being spilled from time to time.

I do feel as if life is too short to worry about immaculate looking carpets.

I am not sure how much I worry about hygiene either. Creating/trying to create a sterile environment isn't great in terms of building up young immune systems.

On the other hand removing obviously muddy/dirty shoes is a courtesy. I note that Debrett's recommends this.

Coffee if they had a athletes foot surely they should be wearing socks? If not then they are bloody stupid!

Eh? Since when is not wearing socks with, say, sandals or flip flops "bloody stupid"?
I think you'll find that wearing socks when you have athletes foot in warm weather is actually bloody stupid.

And what about the smelly feet issue?

Also, if you're worried about germs to that extent you should seek help imo.

I just go with the flow - I wear shoes in the house in hall/kitchen/utility which all have hard floors but I generally avoid wearing shoes on the light coloured carpets.

Happy to take shoes off at someone's house, happy to leave them on if someone says 'oh no it's fine. Equally happy to pop them off if it's a shoes off house.

No big deals either way here.

"Perhaps the reason for light coloured carpets being popular is that modern/new build homes have smaller rooms and that beige carpets create a feeling of space."

I think you might be right. I grew up in a shoes on house, but we had horrible carpets, pets and my mum hated housework and didn't care how clean the house was.

I don't ask people to remove their shoes but if they offer (and they're going upstairs when we have carpets), I'll say yes please. I say it's up to them if they're staying downstairs because we have hard floors. I have a toddler so I'd rather the carpets are kept clean, though.

I also always offer in other people's houses, and we remove ours as soon as we get home. For me it's a comfort thing, a bit more than cleanliness - I feel more comfy without shoes. But my parents didn't remove shoes and their carpets were filthy, frankly, so that's definitely part of it.

I just don't understand germ obsessions. I would hate to spend so much time worrying.Dont remember the last time anyone here had a tummy bug though, barely a cold. Thankfully I can't think of anyone I know who has asked me to take my shoes off, if they do it makes me feel so uncomfortable. Obviously if I had shoes which were covered in mud, salt etc I would take them off, but on a normal, dry day, that's what doormats are for. And other peoples slippers just make me wince a bit ! having people feel comfortable in my home is far more important to me.
Coffee, that party sounds awful, I too am short & would feel doubly uncomfortable at a party in my posh frock and no heels, looking up at people and trying to talk!
Horror of horrors, I've just thought, lovely weather at the weekend, patio doors wide open, I wander in and out with bare feet! And I just can't seem to get the cat to take her wellies off for anything!

Germs on shoes? How odd - what do people do, eat them? More germs on door handles and coins.
I know very few people who take shoes off - the flagstones/tiles are freezing on feet. Why would you ask people to start getting undressed. Must be a North London thing - certainly doesn't happen around here.

OMG!!!! GERMS!!! From the filthy, germ-ridden, filthy OUTDOORS!!!! OMG I have a vat of bleach just by the front door and make everyone take a bath in it, and shoes get thrown away!!!!! No GERMS in my house!!!!

Or, you could just get a grip and decide whether a shoes on, or shoes off policy works for you. Personally we have a shoes off before you go upstairs rule but not because of germo-phobia, because I don't want kids traipsing muck all up my fairly expensive new carpet.

Do people who worry about germs on shoes also make people change their clothes when they come in, particularly in the summer when they may not have been wearing a coat? After all, think of all the germs you've accumulated over a day of brushing against other people, sitting on public transport, sitting in waiting rooms, or just brushing against walls and doorways that other people may have brushed against.

No podiatrists on the thread yet?
My DM has been told by her doctors that she is not to go barefoot and she is not under any circumstances to wear slippers. Slippers are terrible for your feet.

I seem to be living in a parallel universe to the rest of MumsNet. My job involves home visits- I always ask if people want me to take my shoes off and only about one household in 10 ask me to and they're mostly Asian families.
My DM is the biggest snob I know and obsessed with etiquette and she wears shoes in the house and never asks guests to remove shoes. I just can't work out why anyone gets so worked up about this.

Shoes on. Would never expect guests to take off their shoes, it's true it makes you look stupid and uncomfortable. Karndean cleans very easy so it doesn't bother me. We have pets and toddlers. We are never ill, in fact we are very outdoorsy and healthy family! All your sterile houses sound incredibly boring, cream carpets are a bit dated surely? We have Karndean throughout and a modern carpet on stairs.

The pale carpet thing I have more sympathy with, although would like to think I could be trusted to make a judgement as to whether my shoes were actually dirty (and obviously in those circumstances would always take them off). However, the germ thing completely baffles me.

I take my shoes off in the house because I want to keep my carpets clean and I do prefer it when others do (I think it's polite to follow what the host does) but I would never ask anyone else to or even try and make a subtle suggestion. I will always offer to remove mine in other people's houses though. I take my own slippers to the houses of people I know well!

The odd thing is that when someone posts about taking their PFB to a playgroup and worrying about PFB catching germs from sharing toys, they're swamped with replies about how great germs are, children need exposure to germs to build up their immune systems and told to get over themselves as PFB will soon be eating everything they find on the floor but wearing shoes indoors is an act of disgusting depravity and 'WHAT ABOUT THE GERMS?!!'

I'd never ask a guest unless their shoes were overtly dirty but we take off our shoes indoors -- as do all our friends. It may be because we're still at the young children stage so plenty of babies crawling/kids playing on the floor...

I see. It's pale carpet that does it. I can't see why people have pale carpets outside the bedrooms. Downstairs is better with wooden floors /flagstones in kitchen and Turkish rugs that can be given a good bashing regularly.

I'd never ask guests to remove shoes in my home as I really do think it's pointless. However if someone asked me to, then I would of course oblige (though if I'd known in advance I would bring some slippers with me)

This is a regular one.

I always remove mine unless told not to - but I am in trainers, boots or wellies so wearing socks. No socks usually means shoes where someone has been no further than the car or the office and so are unlikely to be.mucky.

Soupdragon I don't own my ballet pumps anymore but I did have a pair a few years ago, they were the only shoes I ever wore without socks, sometimes I wore them with pop socks but I hate those things. So I shall rephrase my other posts and say I cannot stand wearing shoes with out socks, except one single pair I owned for 1 year. Phew. That's better!