Yesterday I got my carpets cleaned. They were pretty filthy, and now they are sparkling clean (or at least as sparkling as 7 year old carpet gets.) And I REALLY want to keep them that way. In the past we've always let people wear shoes in the house. It's just always a little bit awkward to ask people to remove their shoes, and with the layout of our house we don't have a nice place to store them. But, the more I've thought about it, the more I am drawn to the idea. Reason number one being that I really want to keep the carpets clean. Reason number two is that I strongly believe that the home can be a sacred place, and removing one's shoes is a small gesture to indicate that you are entering hallowed ground.
What is your shoe policy? Do you hate it when you people ask you to remove your shoes?
About Me
- Jessi
- Mom of five lovely daughters, wife of one dashing man. Born in Utah, grew up in Oregon, live in Georgia.
Wednesday, April 16, 2008
Shoes or no shoes? That is the question
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12 comments:
I'm still renting....sadly that means I don't care too much about the carpet.
I know some people feel awkward being asked to take off their shoes (my 50+ year old father), but I find more and more that people either do it automatically or ask if they should take them off.
I think it's okay to ask people to take their shoes off.
I'm in the middle on this one. We moved into our house eight months ago and we have LIGHT carpet. We do not have a great shoe area but I bought a deep rectangular basket that seems to fit okay next to the front door.
My general policy is kids take off their shoes. I think cutting down on just the kid shoe traffic is a huge help. The neighbor kids know where there shoes belong and so do my kids. They only asked once why they have to take their shoes off but grown-ups don't. Kids see mud and they stomp in it. Most adults will avoid mud and puddles unless they are on a puddle jumping spree.
I also find that if it is rainy or an adult has muddy shoes they see the basket and they take off their shoes. Usually if I see them starting to take off their shoes I'll say, "Just the kids take them off, you don't need to." But if I see dirty shoes or it's raining I just don't say anything and it seems to work pretty well.
Tell us to keep our shoes off! It's your house, you can do whatever you want! :)
We too are still renting and the carpet in the long run isn't an issue. However, my kids often come in with wet or dirty shoes, so we have a no shoes in our house for our kids. We have a shoe rack inside the front door. We don't request that people remove their shoes, but they often do since the rack is obvious and our shoes are removed.
I am never offended if people ask me to remove my shoes. I just apologize if I happen to be wearing holey socks;)
I had this cute little sign up on my front door that "Sock only please" and most people listen to it. I had a little place for shoes with a bench for them to sit on...but there are always going to be some (like my dad) who don't want to take them off.
I think you know my policy.:) I tell the kids to take off their shoes. I usually don't ask the adults to take them off, but if they ask me if they should take them off, I say, "sure." It really does make a big difference in keeping the carpet nice.
These are all good answers! I think the prime suspects for tracking dirt into the house are the kiddos. Kids are totally OK with taking off their shoes. I've found the same thing - many adults offer to take their shoes off. So keep the policy, but be flexible with adults who like to wear shoes!
No shoes! We stood by that policy and after seven years our carpet was still so clean that we sold a house with five year carpet and they didn't even ask for an upgrade. We keep a basket by the door or a target shoe organizer, and try to be gentle about the reminders. The only people that have ever gotten mad were my parents and they lived. It's your house.
We try and take our shoes off as we come in. IT can be a pain as Morris is coming and going with Huge lace up boots. It seems like more and more people expect you to take off your shoes as you enter a home. You can always know by the shoes lined up by the door. THe other day I went to a baby shower at this huge beautiful home and some were taking off shoes, some weren't. I really didn't want to take off my shoes because they completed my outfit. I'm so short I needed the extra inches to make my pants look good. Now how's that for vain? We have a mat or towel by the door also for wiping off moisture.
I'm with Audra-- we don't wear shoes in the house, especially the kids.
I guess I just think of my baby crawling around and then I get grossed out thinking of what's on people's shoes when they're in my house!
I think taking shoes off makes a huge difference in the cleanliness of the carpets, and especially the first room people step into.
I always tell people to take their shoes off! Oh well. And I always take my shoes off when I come into someone's house..it's out of habit I guess!!
From living in Japan, we take our shoes off almost automatically and as such I usually only buy slip on shoes now (I'm a little lazy). I saw a sign in Okinawa that said "This is an American house with Japanese style. Please take off your shoes and stay a while." I thought it was cute, but not enough to buy a sign. We usually just keep a big wicker basket or rack by the front door and people usually get the hint.
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