Shoes on or off for house parties? Minnesotans debate
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Maybe it's the snow and salt on sidewalks, or perhaps the strong Scandinavian influence, but Minnesota is mostly a shoes-off-for-house-parties state.
Why it matters: Shoe etiquette is the type of thing people love to bicker about — even in Minnesota, where we often suppress our opinions.
State of play: We asked Axios Twin Cities readers to weigh in on whether party hosts should ask their guests to remove their shoes, following up on local and national media attention on the issue.
🌧 Linda H. says she always takes her shoes off when visiting another house and expects the same of her guests — particularly in the winter or when it's been raining.
- "Dirt tracked into a house is hard on floors and says that you don't care if it makes more work for the homeowner."
🦠 It's not just dirt, Ann R. explains. Shoes bring bacteria into the home. She pointed to a Cleveland Clinic article stating that germs live on floors for days or longer.
- Among the bacteria: E. coli, C. diff and the superbug MRSA, which resists common antibiotics and can cause life-threatening infections, according to the clinic.
🪑 Beth L. says that if you want guests to take off their shoes, place a chair or two near the door so guests can sit down and don't have to hop on one foot.
- Lynn N. supplies indoor slippers or slides for guests at the door.
👞 The other side: "I hate it when I'm asked to take my shoes off," Sara G. says. "Here I am, all dressed up for your event ... and you're going to make me remove part of the outfit? Plus, my feet get cold easily."
- When she hosts during inclement weather, she keeps a towel by the door so guests can dry their shoes while she takes their coat.
🥿 Enid M. brings her own slippers or house shoes to parties. "I hate taking my shoes off! Ewww."
👟 Several readers pointed out that some guests need to wear shoes. Michelle E. has a limp and limited flexibility, and can't walk well without shoes — slippers won't do. Explaining that to hosts, she said, is humiliating.
- "If you are opening your home to guests, you should assume that some people might physically need their shoes and let everyone enter with whatever shoes they are wearing."
- She said hosts can lay rugs for parties or just clean the floors afterwards.
Believe it or not, some people fall somewhere in the middle of the debate.
- "I lead by example, with my shoes off and a sturdy chair in the foyer ... but never tell my guests they must take off their shoes," wrote Kirsten M.