Shoes or no shoes in the house?

chewed

So, a few weeks back I got invited to a BBQ at a friend's new house. Arrived early and about to put my foot past the threshold only to be told that there's a "no shoes" policy in the house! So, I had to walk around the house in socks, then when I went outside to the BBQ/Patio, I had to put on my boots again, and then had to take them off when I wanted to re-enter house and use the jax or grab a beer from the fridge.

I found the whole ordeal a right pain in the arse! It's fine if it was an apartment as you wouldn't need to walk outdoors, but a house???

What are your thoughts on this? Shoes or no shoes?

The Continental Op

So you have friends that are weirdo's. Probably best avoided as life's to short to be bothered with people that worry about dirt on their floors.

btw this isn't the first time this has come up here and I said the same last time.

Subzero3

Why should a person with loafer's be allowed walking around someone's carpet ect. Its sick and the person is right,.no shoes no entry.

What surface were you walking on?

Surely you wouldn't wear boots across carpet?

Gregor Samsa

I know this has been done before here, but shoes are not only allowed in my house, but actively encouraged. I don't want to see your toes or smell your socks. I'm fine with vacuuming whatever small amount of dust you bring in later.

I remember visiting the US for work onetime, and being invited to my boss' apartment for dinner. 2 colleagues from Japan were invited too. When I got to the apartment, there were shoes outside the door on the corridor. Thought nothing of it, since I assumed it was the Japanese being Japanese, but when I entered everyone in the apartment was shoeless. Problem for me was that I remembered that I'd put on an old pair of socks that morning with gaping holes in both big toes. So I decided to ignore the obvious protocol and proudly express my Irish culture and keep the damn shoes on.

Kintarō Hattori

I first came across this with my Polish partner, about 17 years ago. It seemed odd at the time but now it makes perfect sense. You walk in and over lots of dirt outside. Why on earth would you bring that into someone's house, particularly if they have carpets. Shoes off is simply hygenic.

EmmetSpiceland

Take them off on request. Otherwise, I’d just wipe them on the mat and carry on.

Subzero3

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119543910#Comment_119543910

Why would you have smelly sock's this day and age. Most people wash feet daily and change socks. If someone was sweating there are probably wearing the wrong socks, have naturally smelly feet, or are un-hygienic.

Now if you were playing 5 aside and were visiting atleast take a shower first.

The Continental Op

Anyone that knows us wouldn't even invite us if they had a no shoes in the house policy. I can remember one neighbor that had just had a new solid wood floor put down have a dance in the same room (it was more of a massive hall than a room) and he said hobnail boots welcome as he wanted to give the floor a bit of patination and character - my kind of guy.

I do understand there are people that want to keep their house perfect and thats fine by me but I don't need to visit them or go in their house for any reason I can think of.

SuperBowserWorld

We make the cat leave his shoes outside.

Gregor Samsa

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119543961#Comment_119543961

You've just asked "Why would you have smelly sock's this day and age?", and then given no less than four reasons why someone would have smelly socks in this day and age.

Subzero3

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119543987#Comment_119543987

Yeah and then you don't take off your shoes, aka visit the house . So you should turn up with clean feet.

gmisk

I personally take mine off and so do my other half but guests it is up to them.

I have a pair of Crocs stored at front and at back if I need to pop out to do bins or something

freshpopcorn

I've got into wearing sliders around my house. However I wear them outside as well if I'm going to the car, etc.

If I come home from the shops, work and I'm going out again I don't change out of my shoes.

I don't seat, lick, eat off the floor. So, what's on it doesn't bother me. You'd generally smell crap of it was on your shoes.

Leg End Reject

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119543987#Comment_119543987

Probably best to just amputate your own feet at the door and cover your stumps with a plastic bag to stop blood dripping everywhere.

I don't wear shoes around the house for comfort, but will walk around with shoes if I'm just back to collect something. Guests can leave their shoes on. I don't have any carpet but doubt I'd enforce no shoes if I did. There will be as many germs on feet as shoes, plus the risk of verruca viruses and the fungus that causes athlete's foot. People can keep those to themselves. And I won't be putting my feet anywhere near the communal slippers some people provide for guests. Mank.

Princess Calla

We take our shoes off when coming into the house.

I've pretty much always done it for comfort tbh.

However once the kids came along and crawling on the floor it became a hygiene thing as well.

Don't ask guests to take them off though.

Atlantic Dawn

The idea of someone coming in to your house and walking around in their sweaty or non sweaty socks is disgusting, shoes all the way.

Brid Hegarty

In my house I need to keep the shoes on or else the dog hairs will stick to my socks from the wooden floor/tiles.

Jequ0n

No shoes inside the house. If you are worried about smelly feet or socks then you need a serious look at yourself.

Larbre34

Its a tradition in much of Asia and Eastern Europe etc, which always made me laugh as any time I've been to China I've seen plenty of people take their shoes off entering a home, but having no problem spitting cigarette induced phlegm on the floor once there. Go figure.

Anyway, to me its a highly ignorant request to ask people to remove their shoes when they enter your home. Its a time consuming, unnecessary and often uncomfortable thing for any guest to have to do.

A friend of mine married a Chinese woman and she made him introduce it in their home. I was blindsided by it the first time and complied, but I told him I wouldn't be doing it again, so he bought some medical shoe covers which he keeps at the front door and now everyone looks ridiculous.

Not this shite again!

Strumms

I’ve never asked anyone to remove shoes, neither have any of my family. It’s a weird phenomenon. The only person I remember up to that craic was a mother of a lad who I was friends with at school. She was an utter freak re: cleanlinesses to the point of being neurotic…you’d call around to theirs and she would 90% of the time be in the middle of doing cleaning, dusting or polishing, ALWAYS. She’d be out like a whippet with marigolds, apron, duster and spray to oversee shoe removal…. “ welcome Strumms, nice to see you, you know the drill “…. Yes a drill to your fûcking temple ya weirdo….A lovely woman but a freak…

here is all wooden floors aside from the bathrooms so you’d go skating if you were to be just manoeuvring around in socks.

pgj2015

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119545424#Comment_119545424

He needs to grow some balls I reckon.

thedart

Since wearing my partners dress and singing harry styles I go barefoot

CPTM

No shoes in the house! Unless you have visitors over in which case tell them to make themselves at home whatever makes them feel more comfortable. I don't think I could ever buy a carpet which would make me feel like telling people to take off their shoes when they come over.

Atlantic Dawn

One of those shoe wrap machines they use at million dollar house viewings at the door is probably the best answer to cover all bases...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BECAs4adFE8

snowstorm445

I never gave this much thought until I first went to Denmark, and nearly got eaten alive for walking around in my shoes inside the guests house. For Scandinavians wearing shoes inside houses is really frowned upon - they usually have a little stand at the front door for people to take them off once you arrive. Some of them have indoor shoes/slippers for that reason. Basically with an awful climate all year round they would argue that bringing all the seasonal mud, dirt and melted snow inside is pretty disgusting. But then in Ireland our weather is just as bad and yet it really isn't the norm.

Graces7

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119543984#Comment_119543984

Of course. But I knit little indoor slippers for my cats too...

I put on slippers or sliders in my own home as there's no need for me to wear shoes, but I would not expect guests to remove their shoes (unless they stepped in mud or shyte obviously) - just wipe them on the mat. I don't get the concern about bacteria on floors - we don't lick them, and we barely touch them. And sweeping, hoovering and mopping. We keep our shoes on in shops, restaurants, bars, hotels... in all buildings open to the public. Including open houses for sale, or rental viewings. And we're fine.

I have never been asked to remove my shoes in other homes either. Here or abroad. I would understand it if there's a baby crawling, or a lot of carpeting, or if it's the home of someone who's from a culture where it's customary. But otherwise, I wouldn't understand it at all. Yeah, people's socked or bare feet gives me far more of an ick. It could be several hours since they last washed their feet.

Graces7

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119545640#Comment_119545640

Now THAT is neat...

Potential-Monke

I'd like to think if I ever manage to build a house, I'd have this rule, but I'd also be providing slippers (of varying levels of ridiculousness) to swap over to. I'd rather not wear them inside, or have specific indoor shoes, but in my current living situation it would be pointless being the only one doing it! And try and tell my father to not walk around the house he built with his own 2 hands in shoes, doesn't matter if he was just in the fields!

That show wrapping thingy though... interesting (Kinetic Butler one of them is called, €800... normal ones seem to be around €250).

Larbre34

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119545613#Comment_119545613

You have no idea.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119545682#Comment_119545682

Is Ireland's weather as bad though? Certainly not for the same duration, and snow is rare here.

I mean yeah of course you need to take off your shoes if they're muddy, but when the shoes are perfectly clean on the surface, plus they're given a mat wiping, I don't see why it's necessary.

positron

We have kids. We play on the floor a lot. No shoes in the house.

We don't want dried up dog (and sometimes human) excrements / spit / squished slug juice etc smeared all over the floor where the little ones roll around and play.

It really doesn't make sense to wear shoes indoors. It's like going into someone's house and not taking off that rain jacket. Just why?!!

The Continental Op

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119545798#Comment_119545798

You can over do it https://www.webmd.com/parenting/features/kids-and-dirt-germs

snowstorm445

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119545794#Comment_119545794

Perhaps not in terms of the depth of cold, no, but Ireland winter's are pretty mank and miserable. Plenty of muck and scutter around to drag into a house if you're not careful, especially in the countryside.

I'd agree about the doormat though, that seems to deal with all the other concerns. Although more and more I'd find myself taking them off anyway and wearing slippers (or flip flops in the hot weather).

Well shoes with excrement on them should always be removed, but I'm not sure that's all that common. On the rare occasion we accidentally step in shoite, it's horrible! Not something you just wave away. We tend to furiously wipe the shoe off the nearest bit of grass we can find, and then take it off at the first opportunity. And clean it with disinfectant if possible. Or leave it outside the house we're going into.

For the less obvious dirt there is usually a mat to wipe the shoes on. When there are small children in the home, it's absolutely understandable to have a no shoes policy, even when it's just invisible dirt (which it nearly always is - nobody has ever traipsed visible dirt into my home) but no kids, no carpet? I don't see what the issue is with guests leaving their shoes on. That's what hoovers, sweeping brushes, mops, cloths, detergents and hot water are for. I'm fastidiously clean, but with more concern for the toilet, fridge and food prep surfaces than the floor.

Lawlesz

When I first moved to eastern Europe, I thought it was odd. But now it makes perfect sense. People walking on dirty streets, in and out of toilets in bars etc. God knows what they bring round on their feet and then drag it inside all over the carpet. I do it now out of habit, I don't really insist that guests do it though. I never understood the Irish logic behind this, saying they wouldn't visit a house where the owners requested this - you are offended that the owners do not want remnants of dog s**t, urine, chewing gum and whatever else all over their carpet?

Sgt Hartman

I never wear shoes at home but I would never demand that guests take their shoes off either.

Pinch Flat

Common enough in other cultures. Most Europeans would have a policy of no shoes in the house. preference for me is no shoes. Cannot understand why you would drag all the crap on your shors throughout the house

callaway92

Always associated friends’ parents as weirdos when growing up if they said to leave your shoes at the door etc

Graces7

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119545757#Comment_119545757

I would not want to wear slippers worn before by others... Better to have a pair of soft slippers with you? Lino here; rental ,, so easy to clean but carpet is a different matter entirely,

Squeeonline

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119545794#Comment_119545794

Have you seen how many people spit around ireland? It's disgusting. Eventually you walk that into your shoes, and then around wherever else you go. Traces of dogsh1t, bird ****, rotten food... Shoes are disgusting in all likelihood and should be left outside.

We have guest slippers, but no one ever wants them and everyone is just happy in socks or bare feet. If there's a big party with people going through the house to the garden etc, then shoes are ok but we know we will mop the floors asap afterwards to avoid our baby crawling on hands and knees through the dirt (even if it's not visible).

Squatman

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119543888#Comment_119543888

i think you've undermined your own argument there subzero

notAMember

The concept of outdoor footwear and indoor footwear is slowly drifting in. This is Ireland growing up / developing. There are cottages in the city around here that I remember in my childhood had bare earth floors. A lot of them still had outdoor privies. It was only the 80's and 90's they had floors installed. Outdoor shoes were worn indoors all the time, because floors were a fairly new fangled thing, they've only appeared in one generation for the working classes.

In my own house, we have indoor slippers that we put on at the front door and slip-on garden shoes to put on at the back door. It's just more comfy. For guests, they can do what they like, some people are used to taking outdoor shoes off and do that, others don't. I don't mind either way, we give the floors a wash every couple of days anyway.

Gregor Samsa

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119546199#Comment_119546199

So you've regular shoes, indoor slippers, and back garden shoes. I'm telling you, you're on a slippery slope. Next it'll be another set of upstairs slippers. But do you put them on at the bottom of the stairs or the top? So there'll have to be a pair of stairs slippers too. They'll have extra grip, because we all know how dangerous stairs are. Then there'll be the bathroom crocks - because what kind of animal would wear their upstairs slippers in the same room that poo happens?

Then what happens if you walk out the back garden, around the side and want to come on the front door? You've left your house slippers at the back door and you're in your back garden shoes, and all you have is your regular shoes to change into. So you have to get a little back to keep a pair of indoor shoes with you at all times. But you can't put the bag down when you're outside, because then if you put it down inside, you'll be bringing in the dirt and AIDS and Communism and all the other horrors that you can pick up off the outdoor ground that must be kept our of your house. So you need two bags, one for inside and one for outside. Not sure if you need a separate bag for upstairs or nor, but sure you might as well get one while you're at it.

When the aliens finally attack us, they'll meet no resistance. We'll all be too busy trying to figure out what shoes we should don for the occasion to fight back. Then they'll trample all over our pristine carpets and laminate floors with their space tentacles.

Hooked

I'm 44...

I've NEVER heard of this...

But, I can kinda understand it... if posh, new and expensive carpets were involved.

If no carpets were harmed - then I'd think it very odd.

irelandrover

I'm against people wearing shoes in the house. However the story from the opening post is ridiculous. If you invite people to a party where they are walking in and out of the garden then just accept shoes for a day. Wash your floors the next morning and accept a bit of dirt on the floor for a night.

Tzardine

https://youtu.be/A7d4wBFnw7M?t=54

Larry knows best

Graces7

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119545832#Comment_119545832

But a lot of dirt is not fully visible.

Seeing here a divide between town and rural..

whisky_galore

Their house, their rules.

Don't like it, then fcuk off.