View Full Version : Do Americans Leave Their Shoes On?
Mighty Frugal
4-3-12, 3:17pm
Mrs. M's mat thread got me thinking. Probably 90% of the TV shows and movies that I watch are American. And in every single show all the characters walk around indoors with their shoes on.
I've read American reports that state that wiping your shoes before walking around eliminates X percent of the bad stuff-which also leads me to believe that IRL Americans leave their shoes on-since the article didn't say 'take off your shoes' but rather 'wipe them'
In my neck of the woods (Ontario Canada) most of the homes I have been in (95%) it is expected you remove your shoes-and not just in winter.
In fact, I always do a sock check before going over to someone's house (don't want to be sitting around with a hole in my sock:~)
So, is it true? Do most Americans leave their shoes on indoors? If so are your shoes left at the foot of your bed? Do you put them right on after you get dressed? And then walk around with shoes whether or not you are going out?
I can only speak for me, but I always keep my shoes on in my home. I usually keep them on in others' homes as well, unless I see that everyone else has removed their shoes. When I am not in shoes, I wear my slippers. I grew up in Pennsylvania and our floors were rather cold in the winter...so,maybe that is where it all started....
In my home, and most of the other homes in my community here in the Pacific NW, people tend to remove their shoes in the entryway or mudroom, especially during the rainy season.
I never wear shoes inside my own house, and often not outside if I'm just doing misc. outdoors tasks.
DH and I do not wear our shoes inside, but we're immigrants. Most Caucasian Americans that I know do keep their shoes on indoors. Most Asian Americans do not. We would love to have our guests take off their shoes, but in seems rude to ask so we don't. Also, most Americans wear laced up tennis shoes (the running shoe type) and it seems like such a hassle for them to unlace, pull off, and then have to repeat the process when they leave. They also seem uncomfortable doing so. And ironically, they seem ill-at ease when we take off our shoes in their homes.
We have hardwood floors and I also dread the high-heeled visitors, especially the skinny heels.
Does anyone have any good ideas for asking guests to de-shoe without seeming rude? :)
Mighty Frugal
4-3-12, 3:30pm
DH and I do not wear our shoes inside, but we're immigrants. Most Caucasian Americans that I know do keep their shoes on indoors. Most Asian Americans do not. We would love to have our guests take off their shoes, but in seems rude to ask so we don't. Also, most Americans wear laced up tennis shoes (the running shoe type) and it seems like such a hassle for them to unlace, pull off, and then have to repeat the process when they leave. They also seem uncomfortable doing so. And ironically, they seem ill-at ease when we take off our shoes in their homes.
We have hardwood floors and I also dread the high-heeled visitors, especially the skinny heels.
Does anyone have any good ideas for asking guests to de-shoe without seeming rude? :)
Move to Canada-all of your guests will remove their shoes-haha
Can you have a basket of comfy slippers by the entrance way? When guests come over just say casually 'oh, after you take off your shoes there are slippers here for you to wear if you wish' and then walk away.
As stated previously there are a pile of shoes all all my entry doors....except my shoes. I take them off and either set them on the stairs or take them to my closet. I keep one pair of yard shoes right outside the back door so I can slip them on for chores.
I take off my shoes when I go to someone's house. I always carry a pair of socks in my purse during sandle season, I'm not going to go barefoot in someone's home.
We have friends who greet people at the door and hand them surgery booties to put on. She orders them in bulk.
Move to Canada-all of your guests will remove their shoes-haha
Can you have a basket of comfy slippers by the entrance way? When guests come over just say casually 'oh, after you take off your shoes there are slippers here for you to wear if you wish' and then walk away.
Canada is beautiful... :)
I like the basket with slippers idea. It would probably take me a few tries before I could be so casual about it, but very much worth trying. I've also seen some cute signs that you can put outside your door. That might be nice, people would be prepared ahead of time.
Miss Cellane
4-3-12, 3:48pm
Some Americans take their shoes off indoors. Some don't.
It seems to be a growing trend. When I was a kid in the 1960s, no one took their shoes off indoors. But in the past 10 years or so, I have read a lot of internet forum threads about shoes on/shoes off. It can be a very heated subject.
It's not necessarily regional--every time someone says I live in X and we all take our shoes off and I can't believe there are heathens out there who would track all those germs and dirt into someone's house, there's someone else who responds with Well, I live in X and we are all respectable people who know how to walk in shoes and how to clean our carpets and floors and don't need to stoop to forcing people to take off their clothes in order to enter their houses.
When I was a kid, we were trained to use the mat outside the door and brush our shoes off. In wet or snowy weather, we'd have over-the-shoe boots on, and those would be removed before we entered a house. Grownups would wear boots, too. And common sense came into play, as well. If your shoes were really dirty or muddy, you took them off before going inside or you could expect your mom to be kind of upset with you.
The high-heeled shoe problem has been around for a while. I have an old housekeeping book from the 1960s and the solution recommended there is to keep straw slippers by the door and ask any guest sporting spike heels to wear slippers in the house.
My circle is mostly shoes-on people. I've inadvertently upset people by walking into their houses with my shoes on--apparently, in the hustle and bustle of entering a house for the first time and being introduced to the family members and taking off my coat, I'm supposed to notice the basket of shoes and instantly realize that all guests need to take their shoes off. But I really do need more clues than that--because it is so uncommon in my circle, I don't think to look for clues that I need to take my shoes off.
If you want people to take their shoes off, you will need to ask them. I think it is polite to let people know ahead of time, if possible. That way, people can avoid socks with holes in them. And those people who need to wear shoes at all times can either decline your invitation, or ask if wearing house shoes (that are never worn outside) is acceptable. There are a surprising number of people who truly do need to wear shoes pretty much all the time--diabetics, people with foot or back problems, people with really bad foot odor.
I always carry a pair of socks in my purse during sandle season, I'm not going to go barefoot in someone's home.
Just curious, why not?
During warm weather we always go barefoot inside, including when we visit others. Is this considered rude?
Come to think of it, we have friends from India and they've told us that most Indians take off their shoes in the house as well.
In cold weather, I offer socks and our slippers to guests who take off their shoes (usually Asian American family and close friends who don't mind wearing our slippers and socks). I'm really liking the basket idea with slippers and socks. It would be fun to stock it with fun & funky goodies!
DH and I were just having this conversation recently and opted to move to shoes off in the house. If you stop and think about what is on the street out there (snot, spit, feces, urine, pesticide, etc.) and then bringing that into your house it only makes sense. We keep a nice wicker basket by the doors with slippers.
We remove our shoes. That seems to be pretty common among people I know. That could just be because winter is long here and even in summer there is plenty of rain and mud. Shoes get pretty dirty. That's just a guess.
I don't make people take their shoes off in my house, simply because I never did and probably won't start now.
But, if it is a particularly wet day or snowy day, and I go to someone else's house, I take my shoes off, just out of consideration. I certainly don't want to be the one who gets their floors icky.
For me it's not a cleanliness thing. I try to keep my house clean, but I'm not a germ freak. I think a little dirt is a healthy thing. I subscribe to the hypothesis that we have a lot of allergies because we're too clean. It's more the look of the dirt than the thought of being unsanitary.
I didn't grow up taking my shoes off, so I don't expect it in my home. We do have some friends who prefer that, so we do take our shoes off out of courtesy when we visit them. I don't like it because I have bad feet and it is very painful for me to stand without my shoes for more than a few minutes (the slippers don't help).
I would never ask visitors to take their shoes off, as I know some people feel extremely uncomfortable without their shoes, or find it painful to bend down to take them off. I trust my guests to wipe their feet! I try to go with the flow at someone else's house, but don't like taking my shoes off if I've not been warned in advance so I can bring slippers.
I remember the episode in Sex and the City where Carrie had to take off her shoes at a party and somebody stole her Manolo What's His Name shoes - I don't think anyone would ever steal mine!!
I've lived in five or six cities and towns in the rocky mountain region ranging in size from a few hundred to a metropolitan city. I've not know of a single household where going shoe less indoors was tradition. Of course there are the casual times when a person might kick their shoes off for an evening of TV, but by my upbringing an adult going shoe less was borderline slovenly. Matter of fact, this thread is sort of an eye opener for me.
Around here people will remove their shoes when visiting if they are wet or muddy. Other than that it is shoes on, all the time. I wear mine around the house because my feet start to hurt without the support, but if that weren't the case I'd probably lose them when I got home. I do pretty much exist in tennis shoes so its not like I'm wearing wingtips all the time.
I'm almost always shoeless inside at home, but I always wear socks. I start the day with no shoes on, so that continues until, for some reason we go out, and I have to put shoes on, and then when we get home I forget to take them off. Like right now. And I just took them off :-D. It never occurs to me to take them off in others' homes, but I would if they indicated I should. DH is usually shoeless inside as well, but a lot of the time he doesn't take his shoes off because he's back-and-forth in-and-out doing whatever-it-is-he-does in the garage, the yard, etc. Back in the "olden days" I grew up barefoot, as pretty much all kids did, goatheads and all, but for the most part adults never did. That I knew of.
Shoes on, unrepentant. Left at the end of the bed. My house, my rules.
Just curious, why not?
22 years being married to a man who hates to see people's feet. Its like nails on a chalkboard to him. Just in case there are others out there like my DH I don't want to risk offending someone with my naked soles in their house.
I do go barefoot in my own home. I like my feet even though they are large.
I don't tell people to take shoes off when they enter my house by the front door, but if they come in the back I usually say "you might want to leave your shoes here or check them, chickens, you know." A lot of times people do see the pile of shoes by the front and/or back door and ask if they should take off shoes. I always say "whatever makes you comfortable, I don't care. This carpet is old (in the living room) and I'm dying to replace it anyway.
I would pretty much prefer that people keep their shoes on around my place. Kids (and grownups) that wander around barefoot outside get your floors dirtier than shoes would. I just cringe when my DD and little ones come in when I see the bottoms of their feet.
Also, I would hate for people to get their feet dirty on my floor!
Float on, we have chickens too and well they are just nasty. My guys all work on heavy machinery. They are in and out all the time, so shoes on and off are really a pain. I need new LR carpet too. Hard floors are the only solution.:sick:
Whadda ya do????
My immediate family in the US has pretty much switched to leaving shoes at the door after I started doing it -- it is the custom here in China, and yes, people do keep large supplies of slippers at the door for guests. But there is this wierd dance that goes on when someone not in your immediate circle comes to the house, even though it is pretty much customary for everyone to remove shoes you will say "oh no no no, please don't take off your shoes, the floors are so dirty" even if they are spotless. Most people will remove shoes anyway.
Delivery people here have little plastic covers they put over their shoes before they come in the house.
Nobody goes barefoot outside here.
lhamo
Neither DH nor I grew up in homes where it was the custom to take off shoes inside. It never occurred to me that anyone did this. Actually, I have never been in anyone's house where this is the custom. We seem to be able to cope with any additional dirt or germs.
I never wear shoes in the house, and neither do most of my friends. I always bring a pair of slippers when going over someone's house because my feet get cold easily. My mother was German, and drilled it into us growing us to take our shoes off. I don't like mopping floors any more than I have to. If only I could get the cats to do a better job wiping their feet...
I don't ask others to remove their shoes, but frequently people do anyways when they see shoes at the entrance.
In my family, we usually had bare feet, socks or slippers on in the house. We didn't leave our shoes by the door, but jus t feel more comfortable without shoes. My husband's family wears shoes all the time even if they don't leave the house all day. Now, I leave my shoes by the front door, and my husband wears his all the time. He even puts his shoes on before breakfast.
When people come over, they sometimes notice my shoes by the door and take their shoes off. My son has a lot of Asian friends and they always take their shoes off. I wish my husband and son would take their shoes off in the house to keep the carpet clean but they don't.
domestic goddess
4-3-12, 8:29pm
I never wear shoes inside, unless I'm doing some sort of heavy work and want the protection. Bur I often wear socks, because I hate having cold feet. Outside, I nearly always wear shoes, especially if I will be in the yard. This dates back to the summer (I was in high school) that I stepped on a bee 3 times. My foot swelled up real good.
Inside I often whack my toe against a chair or table leg and wish I were wearing shoes! And I always carry my shoes to my bedroom and store them there.
I always remove my shoes when I come into the house then it's slippers on wood, socks on carpet. I think it comes from growing up on a farm where boots/shoes were removed on the back porch before entering the house. My husband grew up in town and didn't/doesn't remove his shoes. I remove my shoes in the entry of houses I visit. I don't ask or expect guests to remove their shoes but appreciate it when they do. I've noticed that when neighbor farmers visit they routinely remove their boots on the porch before entering the house.
Shoes, no shoes, it doesn't matter to me. If people want me to take off my shoes before entering their house, that's fine with me. If people want to go around my house barefoot or in stocking feet, that's fine with me, too. I do tell people that we walk around our place with our shoes on, so they do so at their own risk. Growing up in Michigan, though, I'd always take my boots off if they were snowy or muddy, but people didn't necessarily provide any slippers or anything. That's what thick winter socks were for! :)
IshbelRobertson
4-4-12, 5:28am
I grew up in a family with 'indoor' and 'outdoor' shoes. Usually indoors, that meant slippers in winter and sandals in summer. I brought up my family the same way!
I suspect it was because of the extremely wet weather in the UK and the fact that my Mum didn't like to see mud dragged through the house and onto carpets and highly polished wooden floors.
I don't ask guests to remove their shoes, but many do as they seem to have been brought up with the same tradition as my family.
In my previous post I stated that I do not wear shoes in the house. Just for fun, last night I wore shoes in the house and noted 2 things. First, it felt funny. Second, the heels make me a tad bit taller and I noticed the difference at the kitchen counter and cabinets. Conversely, I am not an outside bare footer, even on grass. I thought it was a health department rule that shoes must be worn in stores but the Amish owned businesses do not require shoes. I’ve already seen Amish women and children bare foot in stores this year. Interesting note, I’ve never seen a bare foot Amish man anywhere, in or out of a house.
We remove our shoes and wear slippers in the house, except for summer when we're mostly barefoot in the house (my "slippers" are actually shoes that I wear indoors only, though - I like supportive footwear). I also take slippers with me in the winter when visiting other homes, as my feet get cold and then the rest of me can't warm up. As Stella noted, most people in this region seem to take off their shoes indoors, probably due to the general messiness of half of the year due to snow, mud, etc. Most guests who come over take off their shoes; if they don't, I don't ask them to.
Shoes off here. Never walk into someone else's home with shoes on. Then again if there is not snow and cold I hate shoes :)
Amish men do not go barefoot only women and children. At least that is the way it is where I am from.
I grew up in a family with 'indoor' and 'outdoor' shoes. Usually indoors, that meant slippers in winter and sandals in summer. I brought up my family the same way!
I suspect it was because of the extremely wet weather in the UK and the fact that my Mum didn't like to see mud dragged through the house and onto carpets and highly polished wooden floors.
I don't ask guests to remove their shoes, but many do as they seem to have been brought up with the same tradition as my family.
We have indoor and outdoor shoes as well and wear slippers around the house, Birks in summer and mules with support in winter and socks for warmth.
Most guests remove their shoes as well. I have a friend who has difficulty and ask her to leave her shoes on but she is very careful to wipe her shoes very well on the mat.
Shoes off here. We typically wear slippers or slipper socks. I don't require people to remove shoes when they come into my home and I noticed that some do and some don't unless the weather is wet or snowy.
Mighty Frugal
4-4-12, 10:25am
Amazing the range! I am a non-shoe in home person. And in my 46 years on this earth living in my province for all this time (save a few years here and there) I have never been to a house where people didn't take off their shoes.
Now, occasionally if it were a formal party then we would be permitted to keep our 'fancy' shoes on-which I like-nothing that makes me feel dumpier than wearing a great party dress and walking around with stocking feet:~)
I never wear my shoes indoors-ever. Not only because of all the real or imagined things that are on the bottom of my shoes but also because I am far more comfy in just my socks. My feet actually say 'ahhhhh' when I remove my shoes/boots. Would hate to have to wear them all evening. But then again, I change into my pjs as soon as I get home from work...:|(
Shoes in the home here, but considering the change to no shoes. My granddaughter goes to a school that is no shoes indoors and she also takes them off when arriving at our home. She's only two. Little bitty babies come into school with no shoes at all and the bigger ones put theirs up in the cubbies.
I've only been in one home (an acquaintance) where shoelessness was customary. It seemed like an odd and fussy quirk to me at the time. I spent most of my youth going barefoot around the house, often on tiptoe. Speaking of odd...:~)
I saw a fascinating thing the other day - a dog paw wiper. I really could use one of these, except the dogs have access to a doggie door all day, so I wouldn't be there to wipe. Anyway, this contraption reminded me of a canister that racquet balls come in (shorter than a tennis ball can) and it had a microfiber towel bunched up inside and secured. You filled the bottom with soapy water, then inserted the dog paw - and as you removed the paw, presumably the dirt and water were removed by the microfiber towel. I already see a problem in describing it to you all - the dirty dog paw goes over the towel FIRST and leaves the grungy stuff there - resulting in the paw not being cleaned by a clean toweling section. Ah well!
All that to say that in our house, the largest floor messes result from the dogs, not humans.
The title to this thread, considered by itself, is pretty funny. So I will say that I do indeed always take them off before going to bed or getting into the shower!
Life_is_Simple
4-4-12, 9:52pm
I never thought about this before. I never wear shoes indoors. My family never did. It never dawned in me that people wore shoes indoors
fidgiegirl
4-4-12, 10:29pm
Also, I would hate for people to get their feet dirty on my floor!
Growing up, that was more why I wore shoes at home than anything else. Because other people did, then the floors were dirty, and then it was gross to go without them.
DH was raised in a take-off-your-shoes family. It is fine, but it does make me crazy when we are running late, we forgot our keys on the hook, and even though both of our pairs of shoes are clean and dry, he has to take his off to walk 10 feet to the hook on the wall!!! Baaaaaaah! And he hates when I leave mine on to do the same thing!!!! :)
I've lived in five or six cities and towns in the rocky mountain region ranging in size from a few hundred to a metropolitan city. I've not know of a single household where going shoe less indoors was tradition. Of course there are the casual times when a person might kick their shoes off for an evening of TV, but by my upbringing an adult going shoe less was borderline slovenly. Matter of fact, this thread is sort of an eye opener for me.This is where I grew up as well, and in my community taking off your shoes was considered bad manners. If for some reason you came to the door without shoes you quickly excused yourself and went and put on a pair. My mother, who has diabetes, also is uncomfortable without shoes on - in her own home or others. If she injures a foot walking around barefoot or in socks, it could mean losing one or more toes or part of her whole foot.
I've lived in five or six cities and towns in the rocky mountain region ranging in size from a few hundred to a metropolitan city. I've not know of a single household where going shoe less indoors was tradition. Of course there are the casual times when a person might kick their shoes off for an evening of TV, but by my upbringing an adult going shoe less was borderline slovenly. Matter of fact, this thread is sort of an eye opener for me.
My experience is identical. Interestingly enough, I spent the vast majority of my adult life in the Rockies as well (Larimer, Summit and Pitkin counties in CO). Until this thread I didn't realize how many people, outside the Orient anyway, remove their shoes.
Footwear off at the door Re: everyone we know... our house, too. Like Pinkytoe, mentioned, all kinds of yuckies and eewies out there. Don't want to be tracking that inside and around!
Unless something's changed since I was a kid running barefoot in grass and sand and mud, it's just plain old dirt out there. It's not like I'm wading through medical waste on my way to the mailbox...
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