<p>Consolation-
Boston native here. I agree. We know “mud season” as a northern thing. As in, “Anyone want to go hiking in Vermont this weekend? The snow has melted but that pretty much means it’s mud season. Bring extra socks!”</p>
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<p>I disagree. Whoever is the owner of the house has the right to set house rules for guests…especially ones regarding perceived cleanliness/cultural norms. </p>
<p>On the other hand, you also have the choice to decline the invitation if you don’t like those rules.</p>
<p>Shoe removal or not is a bit of a cultural thing. More common on the west coast, and in the Midwest, it seems to depend on neighborhood and vary by individual. We are part Asian in my family of origin, and it is just the lay of the land. My Japanese and Korean relatives would be highly offended to have someone wear shoes inside. Having wood floors and oriental rugs, things certainly stay clean far longer, last longer. But I’m not the sort to be a stickler for rules in general, and prefer to bend with cultural norms. </p>
<p>However, at Xmas I have a massive caroling party, and have signs asking for shoes to be off inside, as no matter how carefully you shovel or wipe, shoes track in snow, and I don’t like to be wiping the floor compulsively when guests are present. Puddles can’t stay on wood floor without causing damage eventually, and 30 to 40 pairs of shoes would leave the place a swamp, as we go out, carol in a crowd around the neighborhood, and return to the house. There are many pairs of slippers in a basket by the door, and some bring sandals to wear inside.</p>
<p>So what do people do when they have dinner parties or cocktail parties? Ask all the guests to kick off their shoes at the front door? When the plumber or electrician come to do repairs, do they have to take off their shoes, too? That’s so odd to me! I’m with MommaJ on this one – it’s the floor, folks. It’s meant to be walked on.</p>
<p>I’ve lived in Florida my whole life and until I read this thread, I had never heard of anyone asking guests to remove their shoes. We don’t have snow and mud so maybe that’s why?</p>
<p>^ Could be. </p>
<p>Dinner parties, shoes off. Cocktail parties… too rich for my blood so I don’t know :p</p>
<p>Plumbers, etc leave on because they can drop things on their feet. My dad used to carry around a towel to wipe off his shoes really well if he was going inside (he was a plumber).</p>
<p>And if someone wanted me to keep my shoes on inside, I wouldn’t consider it rude. Their house, their preference. I can say though that I’ve never been asked that either here, in MN, or in CA.</p>
<p>I personally think it’s a common-sense thing. If your shoes are muddy or wet, you take them off when you come in the door. Otherwise, it’s not a big deal. I don’t wear shoes around the house, but that’s just because it’s comfortable. </p>
<p>I had a friend whose parents were very particular about taking your shoes off. That’s the first thing we did when we walked in the door. They’ve backed off that now for the most part, but it used to be automatic.</p>
<p>If you are wearing boots with a tread, it is not possible to wipe off all of the snow and sand. So you can track a lot of dirty snow around, and the sand will grind up the floor.</p>
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My plumber carries cloth footies that he puts on over his shoes if he will be in an area with rugs or nice floors.</p>
<p>Tradesfolk usually don’t take off their shoes. Sometimes they ask. They’re busy, and it’s just one person.</p>
<p>my story is a variation on guest requests…</p>
<p>my d was born the same day as my niece, which I thought was wonderful and hoped our two girls would ultimately have a special relationship. With that joyful feeling that only a new mom has I offered to host a baby naming ceremony at our home for both baby girls, since my bil and sil lived in a tiny apartment in NYC. I was not only rebuffed, but told, they wanted to have their naming at a friend’s "larger, nicer home, (we had a small Victorian farmhouse at the time. I accepted their choice with grace and proceeded to plan our d’s naming. </p>
<p>As we brought out the cake with our d’s name on it, I was criticized by several aunts for not including niece’s name on the cake, even though they all knew I would have happily included niece but her parents rejected the idea.</p>
<p>funny, as it turned out, they never had any baby naming at all. and it took me another time to learn, when the girls turned a year old, I again offered to host a shared party, thinking it’s really all family that are invited but was again rebuffed. I did learn my lesson after that…</p>
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<p>But apparently in some places, your shoes could be practically pristine and you would be expected to take them off at risk of looking like a total clod. That’s what seems odd to the “never been asked to take off my shoes crowd.” </p>
<p>This is clearly a cultural/regional thing. It doesn’t seem to be completely driven by climate/likelihood of inclement weather. It’s hard for me to absorb the image of a dinner party of 10 people or more at a lovely home, milling about with their wine or cocktails, dressed in their “going out to dinner attire” and heading to the table in their stocking feet! But I am forced to re-evaluate my take on the whole thing, given the prevalence here of the expectation of just that exact scenario.</p>
<p>^Ha! Too funny!!</p>
<p>It’s definitely a cultural thing. And people can be very prickly about it, especially being asked to remove shoes. There’s a hilarious Curb Your Enthusiasm episode where Larry is asked to remove his shoes at a party and he reacts like some of the posters’ relatives here, I won’t mention any names!</p>
<p>Our family observes a strict no outdoor shoes past the front hall but we’re flexible with guests. I do wish they’d take off their shoes but I don’t really get too upset if they don’t. It’s mostly a hygiene thing. We live in the city and between the heavy metals, dog waste and God knows what else, it’s much much cleaner to take off shoes. I’m a lazy housekeeper so that’s a primary reason.</p>
<p>One thing that always bugs me is when people put their shoe’d feet on furniture. I’ve never had a guest do it but I see it all the time on tv – people sitting on sofas with their feet, in shoes, tucked under. Can’t imagine why anyone would do that.</p>
<p>Maybe this has been mentioned, but there is also a great “Sex and the City” episode about removing shoes. Carrie’s expensive Manolo’s were stolen and she sent a bill to the hostess.</p>
<p>I’m just glad I spend very little time thinking or worrying about germs and dirt. Most of both is harmless.</p>
<p>We live in southern California and have never been asked to take our shoes off and would never expect any guest to do so. I agree with the posters who consider the floor to be meant for walking on and that people plan outfits with shoes in mind. Also I find it weird to walk around someones home in bare feet. Do people in the no shoes culture always wear socks?</p>
<p>That said I would offer to take off my shoes if they were muddy or very wet.</p>
<p>I go barefoot or wear socks in my own house. I’ve never been asked to remove shoes anywhere before and would find it strange. How do I know they are meticulous cleaning their floor? I’ve stepped on broken glass before from a broken pyrex bowl and it isn’t fun.</p>
<p>I have had some workers take off their shoes and some put booties on over their work shoes - and I’ve never requested any of that, it’s just what they did.</p>
<p>My shoes are as much a part of my outfit as my pants and shirt - and often cost more. I’d hate to have to take off my shoes going to someone’s party because they value their nasty wall to wall carpet more than people.</p>
<p>Northern Illinois here. I never ask anyone to take their shoes off but almost everyone does including repairmen. We take our own off but it doesn’t bother me if someone else doesn’t it. As for parties, I’ve been to both kinds. Once my shoes are off, I never think about them again. I am much more comfortable in socks than dress shoes. It may be a generational thing too. My parents never took their shoes off (and I certainly never asked them too). Personally, I go with the flow at others’ homes. Their house, their rules.</p>
<p>All this shoe discussion is making me think of Hyacinth in Keeping Up Appearances. She’s a social climber who considers herself the consummate hostess. Everyone who visits her home has to take their shoes off – there are even scenes of her husband sitting on the doorstep removing his shoes. She actually wears shoes indoors, but she is the only one who can.</p>
<p>The first four minutes or so of this clip really show Hyacinth’s skill in welcoming people into her home:</p>
<p>[Keeping</a> Up Appearances: Looking at Properties 4.5 [1/2] - YouTube](<a href=“- YouTube”>- YouTube)</p>
<p>We don’t value wall to wall carpet more than people. It’s just a custom, habit and it’s cleaner for those of us in snow and mud country. We don’t even have carpet anymore in our house so it’s definitely not just about carpet.</p>
<p>Honestly I never expected this issue to bring out so many strong and not very nice or accurate sentiments.</p>
<p>Imho, as someone who doesn’t give two hoots about shoes, people are way too attached to their shoes. Maybe I’d feel differently if I actually cared about shoes for a purpose other than protecting my feet from the outdoors.</p>
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<p>Yes, I lived in the city for many years, with dogs that I walked every day, so I became all too familiar with how absolutely filthy city sidewalks can be! You don’t notice how much nasty stuff is on the sidewalks till you have dogs trying to eat it. Not to mention the dog waste (I am diligent about cleaning it up but lots of people are not). I also had a couple of experiences of tracking something nasty through the house and having to clean extensively.</p>
<p>We all take our shoes off out of habit when we come into the house. I don’t ask others to do so but often they do anyway.</p>
<p>The only outrageous guest story I can think of concerns a wedding. My husband’s cousin asked his brother to be his best man, which meant that the brother would sit at the head table with the wedding party during the reception and his wife would be seated at another table. I think this is pretty standard, however, the wife threw a screaming/crying fit before the wedding over not being seated with her husband at dinner. It ended with a fistfight between the two brothers. I can’t remember if she got her way about the seating, but the two brothers never had a good relationship after that.</p>
<p>^^Not the most interesting topic either, imo. Just saying.</p>