taking shoes off

I always remove my shoes at home and when entering other people's homes. I cannot stand the thought of walking outside muck into a house.

We have friends who never remove their shoes in their own home, or in ours, and I wouldn't dream of asking them to.

Your house, your rules izabella

I rarely go shoeless, as I need insoles and without them they become very painful. Neither do I own a pair of slippers as I've yet to find a pair that will give enough support. If I'm visiting someone who I know prefers the removal of shoes, then I take a clean pair of trainers, if I remember. Otherwise, it's difficult - knowing I'll have pain for some while and cold feet as well!

Fortunately, my general style works well with trainers/lace-ups, and my good friends don't care that I keep my shoes on. A win win situation.

No! How ridiculous! I assume my guests have made an effort, which I take as a compliment and then to insist that they are off their shoes. Soooo embarrassing.

I wouldn't make guests take their shoes off, although sometimes they offer if we go upstairs, our living room is on the first floor. Generally they keep them on when they come in on the ground floor which is either wooden or tiled in the kitchen. When our sons were younger and had their numerous friends round they invariably left their shoes in the hall when going upstairs, but there were occasions when I wish they hadn't. Smelly teenage boys' trainers not a great aroma

It's a shame that the odd poster becomes very judgemental by using words and phrases such as 'bad mannered' 'ridiculous' 'over fussy' while the majority are happy to simply state their own preference, for or against or somewhere in between..

It's not a matter to get heated about. I think mumofmadboys summed it up well.

As a family, we take our shoes off and put on slippers. I don't ask visitors to do this but I appreciate it if they do. I notice that young mums who come to pick up their children tend to take their shoes off unasked as do their children. With the fashion for light carpets, it seems to me that taking off shoes is becoming the norm.

why would you want all the dirt from the pavement on your carpets ? dogs wee on the path !

I do think that for a special occasion, such as a dinner party as in the OP, most people make an effort with their appearance.

The dress that looked gorgeous in the mirror at home with appropriate shoes might not look so good in stockinged feet!

Prior warning would allow guests to adjust their attire accordingly and/or take alternative footwear - I think you can get mules with a small heel, can't you?

MyDDiL comes from an Asian family. It is standard practice in their homes to remove your shoes. My DGDs do this without any prompting when entering any house. We have adopted this too. I must say the carpets look much cleaner and I feel it has been an excellent change for us.

Imagine the invite.

Dinner at 8pm. Slippers only please!

Perhaps they'd allow you to turn up in wellies, take them off and don your party shoes (after they've passed inspection, of course...)

The man who sold me our new carpet said that dry dirt vacuums up easily, if the DGD bring in any mud, let it dry before trying to vacuum or clean it.

Always shoes off in my house, non negotiable

So, if you have a party, with say 20 guests, do they all have to take off their shoes?

Bet you wouldn't be so fussy if you needed one of the emergency services in a hurry Shanma!

I'd be more worried about red wine .....

A carpet hasn't been christened until it has a glass of red wine spilt on it.
Or a Baileys

I do understand it in muddy rural areas, or on farms when people have been tramping around among cow/sheep/horse poo, but when it's a house on an ordinary street, and it's not even wet, let alone muddy, I do think it's way OTT.

The OP spoke of going to a dinner party as did I in my post.
I assume that most people would walk out of the house into the car, park outside the venue, walk into the house. No muddy farms to walk through, no dirt. I really cannot imagine in those circumstance a dozen people being expected to take their shoes off and sit down for dinner in stocking feet.The men I know would not be happy at all.I don't think a second invitation would be accepted but then I don't suppose it would be offered.

I would not ask anyone to take their shoes off and would also refuse to take mine off ! If it was a problem for the host then I would leave .

Some people obviously care more for their carpets than their guests LOL

We don't wear shoes in our house and neither do our children. We have one close friend who always takes his boots off if he visits us on the way home from work, but it would never occur to me to ask visitors to take their shoes off.

Nothing to do with carpets per se it's more to do with hygiene

Why you shouldn't wear outdoor shoes in the house

Once, many years ago when I was still teaching, we took the children to a hotel on the coast and the owners asked us to remove our shoes. I did, but I was very irritated at being asked. It was a hotel, for goodness sake! A hotel owner should never ask paying guests to remove their shoes! OK, their carpets were fine ones, but they should have incorporated wear and tear of carpets into the price and replaced them as necessary.

There are arguments on both sides www.wbur.org/hereandnow/2016/09/22/let-them-eat-dirt.

Then there is the question of pets in the house. I would rather take the risks suggested because we wear shoes in the house than the risks from having dogs and cats in the house. Do they have their feet washed thoroughly every time they go in and out of the house?