...to not want to take my shoes off...

[BetterGetTheKidsTeaOn]

when I've arrived at someone's house for a dinner party having spent ages choosing what to wear, including footwear?
Surely you can't expect people to get dressed up to come round for a meal and then ask them to wander around in their socks/tights (or even worse, popsocks hiding under knee-length boots!)

This is an old thread. Why has it come back to life?

It is a cultural thing, most places in the world you take your shoes off before entering the house. I dont understand why it isnt the culure here. I dont wear shoes in my own house but I wouldnt ask guests to do it as I feel embarrassed and anal but DH asks them but he was brought up with it, I wasnt. I wear knee highs a lot and often when people ask it does piss me off as I have socks over my jeans which then looks shite!

It has comeback to life because they crop up regularly-there will be another in a couple ;of months time. They never get anywhere, some people want shoes off some people think it rude to ask. I doubt whether anyone has ever/or will ever change their minds!

Sorry-punctuation went wild!

The polite way to make your host accept that you wear shoes indoors, is to bring perfectly clean shoes, in a shoe bag, and change into them at the venue. This way, you don't ruin flooring, or thread filth such as dog poo and mud into peoples fashionable cream carpets.

Gives me a list of places not to visit.

Another way to make sure that you don't get asked again is to cultivate a really rank pair of feet. Horned toenails, athlete's foot, the lot. You'll only get asked once. [hgrin]

I think YABU

You see I've always been brought up to take shoes off in houses. It's just what you do.

The lower the class the more likely to ask for shoe removal. The upper classes wouldn't dream of asking anyone to remove shoes

Of course I am talking about the English class system - cultural reasons are different.

No time to read whole thread but I freakin' HATE this!

Shoes here are really dirty. And wet, and soggy, often full of snow that will inevitably melt. In the uk, you have nicely paved pavements, and proper roads. At least in the cities.

Riven - that is horrid regarding the dog shit - must say I rarely if ever see any in Bath.

I do think as well that its about being hospitable to guests - I mean I encourage children to remove shoes. And we viewed a house for sale earlier and I made children remove shoes mainly because I don't think they wipe their feet properly.

Children remove their shoes, they've got little legs so shoes end up on the sofa etc.

Adults are assumed to have enough sense to remove their shoes if they've trodden in a turd, otherwise, they can keep their shoes on, whatever they prefer.

I never feel particularly welcome in a house where I'm asked to remove my shoes. It feels as though your presence is only just tolerated.

We wear shoes downstairs (hard floors) and take them off to go upstairs (carpet)

We have a dog who sheds a lot of hair, he never goes upstairs so this stops us walking pet hair into our upstairs carpet. It's a pig to vacuum out as it sticks in the pile.

I have scratched my dining room floor horribly though with heels, I like the battered look but dh isn't happy as it now needs resealing.

I agree that it's a class thing. We visited a colleague of dh after the birth of their baby and they'd sellotaped a handwritten sign to the door telling visitors to remove their shoes. That was tip of the iceberg but we could not get out of there fast enough.

Has anyone mentioned that it is rather common to make your guests remove their footwear?

Because it really is.

I agree, it really is common to be so concerned with your carpet.

Some people are very precious about their floors. To me, it seems a bit daft to buy a floor that can't be walked on! Getting marked and pitted is what happens to floors when they're, well .. walked on. That's what floors are for!

I would never ask anyone to remove their shoes on entering the house. Would not want to embarrass them.

A friend asks me to take of my shoes but also says supper. I am perplexed!

Wellington boots are for mud and taken off (obviously).

But really if you are going to a house for a party, it's house - taxi/car - pavement - house. Pretty much no dirt. Better than socks in any case. bleurgh

I would be very annoyed to wear a lovely dress and have to take off the shoes.

I went to view a house and the owner asked me to take off my shoes. She had the most massive television I've ever seen...if that helps us sort out the class issue :)

LOL at Mama