To ask all guests to take shoes off in my house?

[chardonm]

Just that really. A few people seem really put off by that.

My dear sil has to be reminded several times before she takes them off.

I hate the thought of trailing the dirt inside the house.

You stealth-boasting about your excessive shoe collection is an excellent case in point

Stealth boasting!? 😂Not at all. It’s interesting to hear about such things - considerably more interesting than hearing about dull beige carpets.

Waves at nicola

I have a sign in my house about taking shoes off. My livingroom and upstairs are a no shoe area. I have a baby crawling around so I don't want muck and bugs on my floors.

Oh god we are going around and around in tedious circles of circles of circles nowzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

A sign, eh? What a star.

@OnNaturesCourse Does your sign look like one of these?

More than 750 messages - "I don't believe it!" (Meldrew-style) as this subject has been done to death so many times before.

I have a sign in my house about taking shoes off.

Lol, similar - different wording tho - it mentions said baby crawling around.

Its on the livingroom door so no one has a excuse for having shoes on.

Its only for the livingroom and upstairs. The rest of the rooms are a shoe zone. Basically where baby crawls = no shoes.

Our shoes are kept in the coat and shoe cupboard at our front door.

I was (briefly) lying on my bed last night with my shoes on.
Thought of this thread and took them off!

Just reading the thread about failed flounces - one person forgot her shoes on the way out. Is this why "shoes off" is so popular, to stop guests making a quick exit?

Luna Lovegood had the perfect reason for wearing shoes indoors: "I sleepwalk, you see. That's why I wear shoes to bed."

Shame on you Luna, more work for the enslaved house-elves! Poor Luna, no wonder her shoes kept disappearing.

You don't it interesting that a house has such a history
[sic]

Sorry- I know I said I was done, but I couldn't resist pulling our friend Rose up on her typo

I might find an historic house interesting to explore. But to hear you boasting about your old floors on the internet? Not so much.

And no, you guessed wrong! No laminate floor here either.

Just who do you think you are, btw? Why so unpleasant? I think you are an invented persona. No one could be like this in a straight-faced way.

You're a figment of our imaginations now, Rose. A kind of collective hallucination.

Wanderings... ♥ Luna is my favourite

Bluelady

You're a figment of our imaginations now, Rose. A kind of collective hallucination.

Lol

Sometimes this place is batshit.

And it made it to Liverpool Echo😂

Your house, your rules, end of.

@jennylee

Mn unduly fearful but also misplaced fears.

Many threads on it being OK for strangers to kiss babies, family to kiss babies, feed food from same fork to all family members... Fine.

Feeding food from mouth to mouth and sharing water bottles and ice cream.

If you have a virus or infection or norivurus or flu. You are not going to pass it to anyone through the sole of your shoe on thier carpets.

Your going to infect other people through your slavia going directly into thier mouth. Your sneezes, touching your nose, mouth with your hands and not washing your hands.

It's topsy Turvey. I know family that does this too. Ultra paranoid about shoes on carpets but share, lick, slobber over food with each other and other family members then moan they have all come down with something.

I think you should tell guests before they come over. I have verrucas on one of my big toes and if I was asked to take my shoes off (if I weren't wearing socks) then that would be something I'd have liked to have planned for. And I'm sure you'd feel the same. I feel more comfortable with my shoes off (if I'm wearing socks), and I take them off at my MIL's and SIL's but they don't ask me to. I can see how some people would be uncomfortable being asked to take them off. ALSO, they may not be wearing matching socks.

Does everyone who asks people to remove their shoes provide seating to do so?

That’s the bit that irks me. I have never been to someone’s house where this is catered for. I was semi-able to hop around doing this when I was younger but no longer. If wearing anything other than thongs I now need to hang onto a wall so I don’t fall over. Very rarely do the outside of houses have walls you can easily lean on or hang onto. If removing them in the entry then I have no choice other than to put my hands all over the walls trying to steady myself while taking them off (physical issues combined with age). You see some people bristle when you put your hands on their walls but no idea what the fuck they expect in the absence of a chair. I refuse to sit on the ground and do it, as I would need a good deal of assistance getting up plus it’s demeaning.

I did go somewhere once with DD who was wearing those gladiator style shoes that were in fashion at the time. No way she could undo the knots for the laces while hopping around trying to negotiate it all (they had heels). So in a short dress she sat on the floor, legs up trying to get them off. I can’t really bend over to help or I would go down, then there would be true excitement! The person just stood there carefully examining the roof pretending it was not happening. I thought any normal person would get a chair and bring it but apparently not.

For those who are polite enough to provide a seat if making guests remove shoes, bless you .

Does everyone who asks people to remove their shoes provide seating to do so?

Yep, we do. We have a wicker chair in the front porch.

I remember meeting my DPs parents for the first time and took my shoes off and his DM said "you don't need to take your shoes off" and I felt really embarrassed like 'she thinks my feet are grim' or she thinks 'poor love having to take her shoes off in her home' but actually I like taking my shoes off and always do (I always have a pair of clean socks in my handbag just incase)

I'd like to caveat this by saying I was 18 at the time, this isn't recent.

Does everyone who asks people to remove their shoes provide seating to do so?

I do not ask people to remove their shoes. But yes, we do provide seating. It's fairly standard imo :)

Btw, these dinner parties sound more like something I would have called "supper". I'm not from the UK but my DH is. We had my boss and his wife over a few weeks ago and DH talked about us having invited them for supper.
Oh well. Interesting thread :)