Reno_Fan ROFLOL Eyes watering from laughing so hard!

*bang bang pound bang*

And that would be me hammering down the forum-room chairs.
They're rather big comfy chairs---don't want them flyin' 'round the room and hurtin' someone.

pharaoh gave me an idea . . .maybe you could have a place to put the shoes (cubbies or whatever) and attach/stand up the sign on/to that?

That's what I was thinking, Jen. She didn't ask for opinions on shoes/no shoes! And people are now telling her how often she's supposed to vacuum? She simply wanted to know how to hang something on the door without damaging it.

As far as hanging something not too terribly heavy ----
Love my sticky-back Velcro!

From my 12" fluorescent under cab lighting over my computer to my cell phone hooked on the side of my computer tower, to the decorative wood sign on the front door, back in the day that said "Day Sleeper. Please don't ring the door bell" to keeping the one huge decorative towel on the rod in the bathroom to keeping the CD Changer in the truck from sliding to soooo many other applications around and outside my home --- Looooove my sticky-back Velcro.

reno-fan ROFLOL as well... Too funny!!

Why not hang it inside? Hanging it outside will just get you some funny looks from your neighbors. You can tell people when you open the door--it'll be an assertiveness training exercise. You are strong, you are woman! Let me hear you roar.

I can't believe there are only 26 replies so far....

I have no advice on how to hang it, but there were some good suggestions. Although I take shoes off when going to other homes, I also would feel put off if someone asked me to remove my shoes. We have a basket by our entry where we keep shoes.

Signals catalog did have a nice "Remove thy shoes" doormat that I was planning on getting - but I can't find it on their website anymore. Drat!

Hey ... here are "wall words" that could go directly on the door!

Here is a link that might be useful: Link

I am personally very grossed out by other people's bare or socked feet all over my house-- but that's my thing. You can do whatever you want in your home.

You've had many suggestions about HOW to hang a sign (and they are the very same suggestions provided for how to hang things on your walls).. but I have to side with the group who says no sign on the front door. First, I think it is tacky to hang a sign on a public door-- even if only one other apt shares the entry area. Second, is that really the first communication you wish to share with the guests coming to your house? I am a pretty down to earth person but I would be absolutely appalled if I was met with a note on a front door. I would not blink an eye if AFTER I was greeted, I was politely asked to remove my shoes (even though it skeeves me out).

If you can't muster the nerve to ask guests to remove their shoes, then I'd suggest you buy a steam cleaner. They don't cost all that much and you really should clean carpets at LEAST once a year. I am not a clean freak but I used to clean my livingroom and bedroom carpets (when I had them) once a month.

3M makes temporary hangers that you could use. They sell them lots of places (Walmart, HD, supermarkets, etc.). You take the backing off and stick it where you want. When you want to remove it you pull the little tab on the bottom and the hook removes, no mark left behind.

We just ask people to take off their shoes. No sign needed. Just provide a small bench or chair and a place to put their shoes (be prepared with clean socks for anyone that might want them). The only person who has ever objected was my 16 year old niece who, like most 16 year olds, objects to everything.

Postum- Is this it? I googled and found it an another site.

Here is a link that might be useful: doormat

If I arrive at someone's home and they have a sign on the door asking me to take my shoes off, I won't be ringing the bell, I'll be taking my "dirty" shoes home.

Unless someone has mud caked on their shoes I don't see the need.

I wipe off my dog's paws, maybe I'll start wiping off my guests shoes too. LOL

There are really good matts and shoe brushes that do an excellent job of cleaning off the bottom of shoes. That's what is by my doors.

We live out in the country and dirt tracked in is one reason we have a stone entry.

I'm curious, though: when you have a dinner party, do your guests remove their shoes---particularly women's high heels? Jimmy Choo's are meant to be seen, not shelved :)

I once left a party because the hostess wanted everyone to remove their shoes. I'd been working all day, and was wearing heels with no hose (summer time). My feet had been sweating, I'd walked through a new construction job site that had kicked dust into my shoes, and to be blunt, my feet were *atrocious*. Sweaty, stinky, dirt rings, etc. I had no time to go home to freshen up, but had RSVPd to the hostess, so I wanted to show up. It was awful. I was mortified when I saw that she was asking people to remove their shoes. I feigned some sort of work emergency and promptly left. Extreme example, I know, but I can pretty much guarantee that my feet would have been worse on her carpet than my shoes, that could have been easily dusted off.

Remember the Sex in the City episode where Carrie was asked to remove her shoes at a party? Someone else walked off with her very expensive shoes.

Reno's story is exactly why I don't ask folks to remove their shoes. You just never know. . . .

Pretend you actually have a life changing event going on in your life *RIGHT NOW* and *RIGHT WHEN PEOPLE COME INTO YOUR APARTMENT WITH SHOES*. While you are socked or bare-footed, consider this event (divorce, death, terminal illness of loved ones) and ask yourself if you really, really do care about renting a carpet cleaner when you move out of the apartment. If you really, really, do care. Ask yourself one more time. Or get a rug?

My DH always enforced the rule while I just smirked. I wear my Haflinger slippers in the house but sometimes keep the shoes on. Most people I know will slip them off if I have mine off or will ask if I want them too. I usually tell them it is up to them.

It is much better to have visitors with shoes than to not have visitors.

My .04 cents.

Since you made it very clear at the onset that this is your plan, I just want to address the sign issue. In general, I don't care for signs at people's doors whether they say, "Please don't ring bell" or "Beware of dogs" or my absolute least favorite, "No solicitors"..........but in this case, where you really, really, want people to take off their shoes, I do think your sign idea is good.
Why?
Well, for one thing, it could have eliminated the embarrassment that Reno felt when she was asked inside to take off her work heels, leaving her feet exposed. If there had been a nicely-worded little sign at the door, she could have flipped around and gone home, perhaps calling the hostess and offering her apologies for being a no-show later.
Also, while many have made a point about looking at the host's feet or at the shoes lined up at the door, some of us, (ME) will still think, "does this mean ME?" "Do you 'want' us to take off our shoes or 'must' we take off our shoes?" It's not as clear as mud. So, a sign lays it out while your hand is still curled up to knock. If you have a problem with it then, you work it out in your head before the host answers the door. If you realize that your feet are not presentable, perhaps you can leave and come back. I don't know. I just know that for people who whip off their shoes when they walk into their house or other's homes anyway, it's not a deal to worry about. For some who may have issues, it gives them a moment to think. I'm all for that.

Red

***Popcorn munchers grab a handful now. I WAS a "Shoes-Off" home for all the reasons that the OP outlined. I had things that way from early in my marriage up until about 5 years ago. Now, I have extreme heel pain, Plantar Faciatis and need to have on shoes with orthotics at all times. I am also prettier than I used to be, smarter, have nicer dinnerware, two dogs............and WAY more understanding of some of the reasons other people may have problems with MY rules.

Redbazel - I could have written your *** (or maybe I should have as yours was nicer than mine). I too have plantar faciatis but one issue is that I still use the dinnerware I got for wedding gifts. You've inspired me to seek new...

Well, hey - we're nothing here if not enablers, right?
;-D

All this talk of signs jogged a childhood memory. My grandfather, who was very proper and intimidating, had a small black sign with gold letters on the back seat window of his giant sedan (think 70's). It said NO RIDERS. As a child, the sign was a great puzzle to me. How are the hitchhikers actually going to see the sign when my grandfather is buzzing down the highway? I never dared bring the subject up to him, but I still chuckle when I think about it.

The father of the Sitwells had a sign up at the entrance to his grand country house, Renishaw Hall, that read:

"I must ask anyone entering the house never to contradict me or differ from me in any way, as it interferes with the function of the gastric juices and prevents me sleeping at night".

Now, that I could do!

I do hope the OP hasn't been dismayed by the lack of response to this question. So many forum members hate to give opinions, me included.

redbazel...LOL I love your response!

lizstanton08, I think the 3M thingees work great and would be your best bet for hanging. One suggestion (like you don't have enough) ...what about a sign inviting people to remove their shoes. Maybe inside over a bench that has shoes placed under it or something. That might me a little softer than a sign requesting removal, unless you're just adamant about it. I'm like redbazel, I suffer from plantar faciatis and wear orthotics. I can handle flip flops or crocs around my home in the evening but going barefoot is so painful I'd turn around and leave before I'd remove my shoes. An invitation to remove them wouldn't make me as uncomfortable about the situation as a request.

Good suggestions about hangers. Or if it suits your style, how about hanging a wreath and tucking the sign into it?

If you feel strongly about having shoes removed I'd personally prefer knowing this before I knocked on the door. I'd appreciate the chance to duck out because I've been in a similar situation as Reno_fan and wouldn't want to come inside then learn I had to take my shoes off. Also, if my pedicure was not in perfect condition I would be mortified to have to reveal any nicked polish. So, I would actually prefer seeing a sign first.

But aside from that, I have to wonder if people who don't allow shoes due to worry about dirt have looked into really good doormats? I lived in a house with light beige carpet for nearly 20 years. In the early days we entertained often and I never asked guests to remove their shoes. When kids came along and were in and out of my house I did normally get them to take their shoes off because they aren't great at wiping their feet. We took ours off as a rule but we were inconsistent about it.

We cleaned our carpets as often as they needed and when we sold the house the buyers did not bat an eye and in fact opted to wait on replacing the carpet. It didn't look anywhere near it's age. I wish I could remember what brand it was because that was some great carpet.

Ok, can someone pass the salt...? ;-)

Of course, if you do have your shoes off in your house, and you do forget to close your bedroom door when going out to a party one evening, and you do happen to walk into your bedroom and then into your bath area without first turning on a proper light, you May step on something that you can't really see too well because it's lost in the pattern of the thick oriental rug you have in your bathroom.
You DO understand that you stepped on this 'thing' with your bare feet, right?

Of course, you folks without little dachshunds that don't like to be left alone until the wee hours won't understand what I'm talking about. And you folks who read the dog-training books that expressly tell you that dogs do NOT punish people for upsetting them by doing unmentionable things in their personal spaces won't believe me because the dog-book authors are very persuasive. And you folks who keep on believing the dog-book-writers of America, when they tell you that little dogs don't feel guilt, they just have guilty looking little faces, will probably not accept my word when I tell you that the same little dog who normally races to the door to greet you with happiness and sproinging jumps, will simply sit on the back of the sofa, not meeting your eyes at all as you walk in late from your party. And when your howl of displeasure at finding the object left laying on the bathroom rug echos down the hallway, that same little dog will crawl under a blanket and hide. That, of course, is not the action of a guilty dog who specifically punished his people, that's just a Coincidence.

Right.

And that will teach some of us to keep our shoes on at home at all times. Why? Because not everything gets tracked in from out-side the house.

Red

I do hope the OP hasn't been dismayed by the lack of response to this question. So many forum members hate to give opinions, me included.

Bahaaaaaaaa!!!!

Because not everything gets tracked in from out-side the house.

And now I'm snorting coffee out my nose!

Hi everyone, I have been reading this forum for a long time and have now just joined. I live in Iceland and here it is considered very rude to not remove your shoes when entering a home, I have always felt ac ward to enter one in the states and not taken the shoes of. The only time it is allowed is when there is a party and people are wearing fine clothing, I would for sure have a sign made and have in my foyer.

just a thought.
Ice

As a few posters mentioned, I was not asking whether you thought it was proper for me to ask guests to remove their shoes. I know this subject is controversial.

I just wanted to know methods by which to hang a sign on a door without causing damage. I will probably also hang a picture or something else on my office door because there is a patch mark where you can see that the previous tenants had hung something as well. I'd like to cover that mark.

Get the 3M stuff. It is made in my hometown and everyone knows that 3M stuff works!

Personally, I think you have every right to post your sign. Your house, your carpet/floors your rules. I thought it was very cool when we visited Hawaii there were signs like that everywhere! One of them said Please remove your shoes, just don't take a mo better pair when you leave!

Maybe you should alter your sign slightly for those with hoof and mouth disease????(excepted!)

I used to take my shoes off immediately when I came into the house.....and I miss doing so.
I had a total hip replacement and the surgeon made my leg over an inch longer....so in order to be able to walk evenly and protect my back, I must now wear my built-up shoes all the time.....so I won't be coming to your house......sorry~

Phoggie--you are not alone as I have older friends from church who would be put out and in fact unable to do as requested. Some people would find a sign such as that makes them uncomfortable or implies they are dirty.

I'll never forget Ann Landers who once advised: it is easier to get new carpet than to get new friends.

To all of the above, may I add, shoe covers are another option. No nails or adhesives, My sign hangs on the door knocker-on glass the suction cups work well. "Please Remove Thy Shoes" so decide for yourself before calling me to the door, and please do not drop in unexpected, that in old fashion terms is very rude, unless before agreed upon. Clean socks, slippers and cover are here to welcome you, Live as you wish and in my home live as I wish or lets meet out.....No one is Right-No one is Wrong ..... Just, Honest Friendship Equals MUTUAL Respect! If sending invitations, add this preference in the information to be fair.

Poor Liz, but you had to have known you would get responses to your question AND about your sign. You've done a good job of taking the advice for sign hanging. Don't worry about defending your rules, but try to remember to be flexible. A couple of my toes were disfigured in a childhood accident and I have been sooooo self-conscious about it ever since I was made fun of in grade school. I've made progress, and have even ventured into open-toed summer shoes...very occasionally. The thought of having them exposed to strangers fills me with dread, though. Please have some kind of slipper available for those who have an issue showing their feet or walking around barefoot.
Thanks for the thread, because I may have an answer as to why my heels feel like someone has driven a spike into them. I'm off to look up Plantar Faciatis and figure out when I can see the doctor.

Red, your story made me laugh! I've had a similar experience with a hairball, but I took a ride and ended up flat on my back, naked and gagging. I limped and retched all the way to the shower.

I stayed within the rules on my first post, but just have to reply to bodica: if shoe covers are an option, then why the sign to remove your shoes? Just answer the door with shoe covers in hand.

Liz, it sounds as though you've taken offense.. and for that I am sorry. I felt it was my duty to let you know how I would perceive being greeted with a demand (and no matter how you phrase it, it is a demand) before I was even greeted with a hello. I thought perhaps you hadn't thought of how that may be taken. I am sure others who shared their foot issues felt they were also sharing something you hadn't considered.

It is surely your house and it is your right to do what you wish-- I think we were all trying to help you come up with a more polite or flexible policy. I know I'd want to know if I was being unintentionally rude.

Here's another issue: Most of my pants are hemmed to only be at the right length if I'm in heels. If I take off my shoes, my pants drag and fold under my heels. Not to mention how silly I'd feel if I had on black pants and a dressy top....and slippers.

What do you do for parties? (Not directing this to the OP only, also other "no shoes" families)

I for one, hate, hate, hate, walking bare feet. My mom was a stickler about us always wearing shoes so we were raised that way. If I have to walk 2 feet without shoes or socks on my feet, I cringe. I just hate the thought of my feet hitting the bare floor, carpeting or any flooring. I don't even walk on the beach barefoot. I don' swim barefoot. OK, so I'm a freak. LOL

Nope brutuses, I was raised the same way. My mom was very poor growing up, and at one point didn't have shoes to wear to school, so she sees being barefoot as a sign of poverty and failure.

What if you had a lightweight sign and hung it with that blue sticky-putty stuff? I don't know what it's called but it's kind of like play-doh, and you can put little balls of it on the back of the sign and hang it that way. Now that I have answered the actual question, I'll say that I agree with funkyart that it is off-putting to encounter an order like that before you even knock on the door. If you must hang the sign, how about in a spot just inside the door?

We are a "mostly shoes-free" house. My family removes shoes automatically, in the mudroom. Friends of ours and friends of our kids almost all remove their shoes automatically, too, either because they also do it in their own house, or because it's obvious that we all have removed our shoes. If KIDS don't remove their shoes, I ask them to do it before they get too far. If ADULTS don't, I say nothing. If we have adults over for a party, I never ask anyone to remove their shoes. I think if you have someone over for a social event, they have chosen an outfit that includes their shoes, and for a variety of reasons it wouldn't be right to ask them to remove them. I think when you have a party or just a few friends over, that's the risk you take -- your floors may get dirty, someone might spill a glass of wine, someone might dance with a lampshade on their head... ooops, that's a different forum.

Now, back to my popcorn. I had to admit I peeked in here only because I knew there'd be some Opinions on this topic.

I'm peekin on occasion too! I'll admit I never really gave thought to the situations above. Usually only family and friends pop over but still something to consider. Good thread!

Graywings, good point,
Call First
Cover or Remove
Thy Shoes
Or let's Meet
At the Cafe!
Love Ya
If I invite into my home,
I'll be prepared to accept your shoes.

Liz, we all knew this one would spiral off in every direction. I'm glad I've been on both sides of this one, since it helps to have perspective. I just wish most of my 'perspectives' on a whole bunch of situations had come 20 years earlier!

And for those of you thinking about opening a can of worms, just so you can add 2 tsp. of worm juice to your planting solution....but don't want a bunch of worms all over the place; let me tell you that the pesky little suckers do get out, no matter what you do to keep the lid on while you pour out the juice!

Therefore, if you really just want to know how to hang a sign, Title your post "How To Hang a Sign on the Front Door?" and be done with it. Because once I know that the sign is going to say, "No Paint-Chip Addicts Need Knock!" I'm going to be crawling out of that can!

Red

I much prefer to step in the little accident with my bare feet which I can wash right away then to not notice it until I smell something funky following me everywhere, and having it spread all over the house on my shoes.

It's not so much the dirt factor but the germ factor that I think about. Yes I understand that some people's feet can be harboring germs but the germs on the shoes coming from outside harbor worse stuff. The other reason is that many many Canadians just do it automatically, even most of our delivery men and repairmen either take their shoes off or wear little booties... it's just a natural thing in our parts.

Heck we were in the midst of remodelling, our floors were all plywood and sawdust and the granite guys started to take their shoes off when they came to install... I had to tell them that they were in a construction zone and to keep them on LOL!

My mom in law has arthritis in her feet, she always has a pair of inside shoes that she travels with if she knows we are stopping somewhere. If she has forgotten them people always make an exception for her, but I noticed that she's very careful to only walk on hard flooring or area rugs when this happens.

I would like to know when this shift to removing shoes indoors happened. I know that when I was growing up in the 60s and 70s no one was asked to remove shoes where I lived in California (not even kids). My husband is Canadian, and when I first met him in the early 80s there was no shoes off rule in his parent's home. His parents have now become rabid shoes off people.

I'm gonna invent a steam cleaner for your shoes you can use at your door. You can step on it and it will emit a small spray of steam filled disinfectant, making everyone happy. It'll go in place of those

Terriks, I wonder if it's coincided with our culture's hyper-vigilance against germs. It wasn't that long ago that we didn't have all of these anti-bacterial products on the market, and all of the advertising insinuating that we're dirty, filthy, diseased people if we don't make use of them. :-/

I had a friend over for lunch on Monday. The minute she stepped inside she asked if she should remove her shoes. I told her that she should do whatever was most comfortable for her. She decided to remove them, she said, because my floors were "so clean." I told her--oh, pish--don't worry about it! She took them off, anyway. :)

terriks: Nobody took off their shoes upon entering a home when I was growing up, either. For whatever reason, cultural traditions change.

We never wear shoes in the house--primarily because it keeps the floors much, much cleaner, and--as I learned a few years ago--it keeps the finish on hardwood floors from wearing out as fast. The guy who refinished our floors told me that wearing shoes in the house is bad for hardwood floors because the grit tracked in from outside grinds on the finish. Maybe that's not true for the new generation of hardwood floors, but for the old oak floors, it's absolutely true. When we were house-hunting, I noticed ruined floors so often in the old houses around here.

As for germs: I never even think about it.

I did not respond earlier to this thread b/c I didn't think I had anything to contribute. However, tonight I was looking around my Bible class room and realized that I did know a thing or two about hanging things without nails.

Our church building is new so we are trying very, very hard to take good care of it. The only products that we can use to attach decorations to the walls are 3M mounting tabs and a new kind of tape. (Sorry, I don't know the brand. I was handed a roll without packaging.) However, we are not allowed to put anything on the wood doors. Apparently the doors in the old building were ruined from years of tabs and tape. Our doorframes are metal so we use magnets quite a bit.

If you are worried about damaging the door, I wouldn't stick any adhesive to it. Your original wreath holder idea or the thumbtack with fishing line idea would work. If you can affix your sign to a nearby wall (maybe right above the doorbell?), you can't get much safer than the 3M mounting tabs. Have you thought about a standing sign? Like the "Snowman crossing" signs you see at Christmas, maybe standing beside a small bench? Just don't make it too cutesy or people will think it is a joke.