Do you walk barefoot in your house?

[NoIdeasForWittyNickname]

Being a wimp, I always prefer to wear some sort of footwear at home – e.g. slippers in winter, flip-flops in summer (if we’re lucky enough to have a warm one). Ok, we have a fluffy monster of a dog and the indoor-outdoor boundaries get blurred in the room with the garden access, but even when we visit some our friends’ immaculately clean homes, I feel uncomfortable if I have to surrender my shoes.

However, reading many floor-related threads on MN, I see lots of comments about, for example, tiled / bare wood floors being too cold to stand on, etc. Surely, if you wear some sort of home shoes, this isn’t an issue? Or am I a slipper-wearing freak and most people just wander around their houses barefoot or in socks at most?

Barefoot or socks inside for me. Never, ever slippers - they've always seemed a bit heavy and clunky to me.

I don't wear shoes in my house, ever. But I don't have pets and my home is immaculate.
I do walk bare foot in the morning when I wake up...it's the reason why I love carpet, even in the kitchen. I absolutely HATE hard floors and don't have any.
During the day I wear socks, sometimes slippers in winter.

Always slippers. They have a proper sole so not slippy.

I would only walk around in bare feet if the house had fitted carpets throughout.

Socks or slippers all the way, or both if it's cold. I hate the sight of feet, I hate the feeling of any bits on my feet and unless it's a bazillion degrees my feet are always cold. The only time I like being barefoot is on a sandy beach.

I also hate flip flops, I can't walk properly in them, the feeling of the bit between my big and second toe makes me feel ill, and I hate the flippy floppy sound they make. Would rather wear sliders.

Barefoot - even though our floors are usually v cold. Have tried wearing house slippers/socks, as I keep getting gifted them (hint hint?) but I always kick them off pretty quickly. Grew up in a hot country where I didn’t wear shoes in my house or garden so I’m definitely conditioned this way!

I wear socks in other people’s homes (or shoes, if they keep them on).

I think that the soles of slippers don't 'hold' dirt in the way socks do, so floors are cleaner.

Our kitchen floor is not normally 100% spotless. We have pets who drip water from their bowls, water drips onto it when unloading the dishwasher, a bit of mud creeps just over the back door mat, etc. If you walk over it in socks they soak up water/mud, then any bits of dry dusty dirt stick to them/get soaked in, and they end up a bit eurgh. Whereas the flat soles of slippers don't attract wet things in the same way. Don't get me started on the male apparent inability not to leave splashes on the bathroom floor.

I'm not sure I've explained that right, our house isn't particularly dirty, but I'd bet if you compared DH slipper clad foot at the end of the day with what he'd have stuck to/soaked into the bottom of his socks as he goes about, the socks would be much much worse.

Bare feet are ok though, they don't absorb things like a sock does.

Socks and slippers in this house. DD prefers barefoot.

Barefoot by choice but have gradually learned to go with socks. I loathe slippers/flip flops as they always look dirty to me when worn indoors because footwear feels like an outdoor thing to me.

Slippers in the winter, flip flops in the summer all the way for myself, DH and DD1.
DD’s 2 & 3 are nearly always barefoot or socks, we have wooden floors and they leave foot marks which I’m always moaning about!

Generally socks as I'm in and out of the garden a lot and bare feet with garden clogs aren't comfortable. Always at least socks in someone else's house - I know my feet are clean but they don't.

In summer, yes.
But in winter (and now, in this weather), thick socks and fur lined bootee slippers - it's cold at floor level in my house!

NeverDropYourMoonCup

Fair enough

I have seen a number of injuries myself with socks on hardwood floors (particularly in carpeted stairs)

Socks or barefoot here. Slippers if it's particularly cold

As a child I was always barefoot, until I turned about 10 and my feet turned cold! Now I always wear socks, no matter. My feet just freeze and go slightly purple without them.

@RampantIvy

Do people who "can't wear slippers or socks" have sensory issues, and do they never get cold feet?

Possibly. I don't mind compression socks as long as my toes are free to wiggle, but normal socks feel horrible on my feet and ankles. I do have large and very broad feet like a Hobbit who has had a good wax, though. I can navigate through the house in the pitch black, no glasses, purely from the sounds and textures under my feet as well. I also like the different textures of the living room rug, the floorboards, the sisal runner on the stairs, the landing carpet and so on, too. I like textures in clothes and furnishings, too.

I'm sat here right now and I am aware that my feet would be cold to the touch, but it doesn't bother me as such. It's not an unpleasant sensation - it would be nicer to stand barefoot on the front path at the moment, as the sun's been on it since before 6am, so it would be slightly rough and very warm bricks, but I draw the line at going out there in my nightie (couldn't be arsed to get dressed when I got up at five past six and DP was sound asleep last time I went upstairs).

I do think that a pair of proper Uggs would probably feel very nice, but I don't have money to piss away on something like those when I have a perfectly adequate pair of feet for free.

Always barefoot here. I feel stifled and like my feet can’t breathe if I’m in socks or slippers indoors. A bit like when some people take their bra off as soon as they get home. They need to set the girls free, I need to set my feet free!

Got a pair of flip flops for when I need to go outside.

I only wear shoes if I'm leaving the house. I don't wear shoes inside but I also go out in the garden as well.

I personally do not like shoes at all.

Socks and/or slippers. Never barefoot, and I don't allow guests barefoot in the house.

No because our floors currently look like this 😬

No, my feet need support and with an incontinent child with a thing for lego, there are too many potential booby traps.

Very rarely, I pretty much always wear thick thermal socks with my circulation. Everyone else in my house is mostly barefoot though (and my kids sometimes say their feet are cold, and I'll tell them to put on socks which rarely causes more than them making faces).

@IdblowJonSnow
Nearly always bare footed apart from a while after I'd trodden on a spider in bare feet in the dark

That alone would put me off bare feet for life! I once found a large spider in my wellie boot and now I'm paranoid each time I have to put wellies on, shaking them vigorously for a minute of so beforehand

@PMcGintysGoat a very good point about the absorbency of socks!

I go real attractive with crocs n socks 😜 I have horrible reoccurring planter fascitis so helps with arch support and comfort, and socks because they can make your feet sweat if house is warm.