Do you take off your shoes when you go indoors?

[Kyriakos]

Flippers? Those are what some people wear when they go swimming and snorkeling.



So residents and married/committed relationship guests take their shoes off, but unmarried/single guests leave their shoes on.


Here it's usually whatever the house rules are. I take my own shoes off and wear slippers around the apartment. If I leave the apartment, I put shoes on. Everyone else can leave their shoes on as long as they wipe their feet on the mat inside the door. Otherwise they'll get their socks full of cat hair.

I used to have a friend who insisted on going barefoot in my house (when I lived in a house). I finally told her to keep her shoes on, since that was when I did a lot of needlepoint and other sewing and it wasn't unlikely that I'd dropped a few pins and needles on the floor. I didn't want her stepping on them.

Hey, no
I meant that if the guest is romantically involved with their host they'd naturally be allowed to act as if they were in their own house=>take their shoes off. After all, they'd likely have taken off more in the same place.
And not as a formal rule, eg if there is an affair which isn't known to others, the guest who is secretly in the affair won't be cosmically forced to betray it by having to take their shoes off

 

[Valka D'Ur]

Hey, no
I meant that if the guest is romantically involved with their host they'd naturally be allowed to act as if they were in their own house=>take their shoes off. After all, they'd likely have taken off more in the same place.
And not as a formal rule, eg if there is an affair which isn't known to others, the guest who is secretly in the affair won't be cosmically forced to betray it by having to take their shoes off

Thanks for clearing that up! It was sounding like a way to find out who's in a relationship and who isn't by what they do with their shoes!

I should add that in my case, when I visit other people who want guests to take their shoes off, I bring slippers with me. I'm not running around other people's homes in just my socks.

 

[Birdjaguar]

I wear slippers when I'm home.

 

[amadeus]

Flippers?

You would be surprised how many mermaids—or as your Prime Minister would say, merpeople—we have in this country.

 

[dusters]

Flippers? Those are what some people wear when they go swimming and snorkeling.



So residents and married/committed relationship guests take their shoes off, but unmarried/single guests leave their shoes on.


Here it's usually whatever the house rules are. I take my own shoes off and wear slippers around the apartment. If I leave the apartment, I put shoes on. Everyone else can leave their shoes on as long as they wipe their feet on the mat inside the door. Otherwise they'll get their socks full of cat hair.

I used to have a friend who insisted on going barefoot in my house (when I lived in a house). I finally told her to keep her shoes on, since that was when I did a lot of needlepoint and other sewing and it wasn't unlikely that I'd dropped a few pins and needles on the floor. I didn't want her stepping on them.

Sorry, it was a typo. Slippers.

Since I started to have parties in my house and I hold private practice as well, I have like 6 pairs of slippers in cabinet next to entrance. Slippers for boys, girls, men, women and slippers for cat to chew on. That's at least 5 pairs.

 

[Narz]

At home, if they're dirty. Away, if they require me to.

Usually, who cares? I got 3 cats.

Yeah but unlike humans they lick their feet clean

 

[Remorseless1]

Where I live -- Oklahoma - it's variable. Weather, new floors/carpeting, clean floors, boots or not, etc. It's like most of the responses here, if your host asks you to remove your shoes, it's done with no controversy. The exception is farms/rural homes, those are standard "leave them boots by the door."

In my house? I kick my shoes off as fast as possible, more for comfort than any other reason.

 

[Angst]

in denmark, taking off your shoes is the status quo, out of politeness/tradition.

personally, my floor is already kind of messed up, i just don't clean enough. so when i have visitors owners, i let them know they can keep their shoes on if they want. this is an active reminder over the default of taking your shoes off that people do absent-mindedly. most take their shoes off anyways.

personally i don't mind crap on my feet and prefer going about without shoes. if i walk around in just the building or down with the trash or out for a smoke or whatever, i don't bother putting on shoes. so if my foot gets stuck with a dust bunny, idc.

 

[Smellincoffee]

When I am home, absolutely yes. As soon as I am home I switch to gym shorts and nothing else ASAP. At friends 'houses, if I know I am there for a while, I will loose shoes.

 

[Quintillus]

I am from a shoes-off family. Less dirt tracked in, and IMO more comfortable. Not super-strict about it though - you can run in to grab something with shoes on and no one is going to care, and if you keep your shoes on while you are on the living room couch, the cat might take a nap on them while you're wearing them.

Most of my friends were also from shoes-off families, but not all.

I love the mental image of flippers being the norm in Japan. That would certainly be unique!

 

[stfoskey12]

in denmark, taking off your shoes is the status quo, out of politeness/tradition.

personally, my floor is already kind of messed up, i just don't clean enough. so when i have visitors owners, i let them know they can keep their shoes on if they want. this is an active reminder over the default of taking your shoes off that people do absent-mindedly. most take their shoes off anyways.

personally i don't mind crap on my feet and prefer going about without shoes. if i walk around in just the building or down with the trash or out for a smoke or whatever, i don't bother putting on shoes. so if my foot gets stuck with a dust bunny, idc.

I use slippers for taking the trash out, as that way my feet feel protected but they're still easy to take on and off.

 

[Angst]

I use slippers for taking the trash out, as that way my feet feel protected but they're still easy to take on and off.

makes sense. personally, i honestly like the ground under my socky feet, esp when it's been raining.

 

[Klaus Hergersheimer]

I always take them off at my own place.

I was only in one house in my life where someone snapped at me [a little] to take my shoes off, but that was many many years ago. Okey dokey, pal...

 

[stfoskey12]

Usually if I'm over at someone's house for the first time, if it's a group event I'll see what other people are doing. If I'm unsure I'll just ask, and it's never been an issue for me.

 

[Birdjaguar]

Even the Huffington Post has an opinion on this

Is It Rude To Ask Guests To Take Their Shoes Off? This Question Has Sparked A Fiery Debate.

In many Asian American households, taking off your shoes is expected. Not everyone is a fan.

www.huffpost.com

 

[tjs282]

We habitually take our shoes off in our entry hall in our own house (in Germany), and usually also when we go visiting -- unless our host tells us it's not necessary.

 

[Plains-Cow]

I only take off one shoe when in the house. I flip a coin from the change bowl near the doorway to decide which one: tails for the left, heads for the right. I also keep a tally on a note card near the shoe rack to see which one's been winning.

 

[danjuno]

Finally, something sensible.