Latest news with #houseproud
The Guardian
4 days ago
- General
- The Guardian
We decided to become a shoes-off house. It was more complicated than I thought
'Shoes off!' barked my slightly bossy friend Kit as I was about to cross her threshold. I was taken aback: was this a new habit adopted from social media or some lifestyle guru? Kit is not obsessive, but she is house proud. She lives in the country, her house surrounded by muddy lawn near a beach, so it makes sense not to drag dirt on to her beautifully polished parquetry or scratch it with sand. She goes about barefoot year-round: slippers are not her style. She keeps a pair of rubber slides at the back door for putting the bins out, or going to the veggie patch. I had no choice but to comply, relieved that I had on good clean socks and that Kit's house is well heated. I felt a bit awkward at first, slipping and sliding like a shaky beginner skater on an ice rink. But by the end of the evening, I was persuaded that we too should adopt this more hygienic approach, despite misgivings about dropping boiling water or cooking fat on my feet. Sign up for our rundown of must-reads, pop culture and tips for the weekend, every Saturday morning Many non-Anglo-Celtic households, of course, have a long-held tradition of removing one's shoes at the door. In Japan, indoor house shoes called uwabaki are usually provided to keep tatami floors, where you sit, sleep and eat, pristine. It is actually illegal to wear outdoor shoes in rental properties and can incur a fine. In Scandinavia, felt and wool indoor slippers are stylish accessories. In Canada, where the severe cold requires heavy footwear such as snow boots, houses usually have a wet room in which to remove all waterproof gear and leave it out of the way. A bit of reading informed me that shoes carry in germs, bacteria, pesticides and a variety of other nasties such as carcinogenic asphalt sealants that are invisible but can linger in domestic dust. As just two adults at home, we weren't worried about small children crawling at ground level, nor do we have a pet, but this relatively minor adjustment sounded healthy and sensible. The decision proved to be surprisingly divisive and complicated. When I raised it with friends, some said they disliked being asked and avoided houses where it is required. Even small changes demand thought. Unforeseen decisions suddenly have to be made: how best to suggest this new approach? On the phone, when inviting people round? Or at the door? And then: where to take off the shoes? Outside, where spiders and other critters might make their home in them? Inside, where they will look messy? (Should we get a box to contain them? Or a rack?) Enthusiastically embracing our decision, we buy stylish slip-ons so as to avoid the kind of tartan woollen footwear our grandparents wore (one friend with a shoeless home told me his partner said he'd leave him if he ever adopted slippers); we try to remember not to step outside in them on any account, not even to go to the bins or pick a herb; we keep separate shoes for outside by the back door. The key is not to have to bend down or lace them up. It takes a few weeks to adapt, with a few stumbles evidenced by muddy sole tread marks on the stairs. Sign up to Saved for Later Catch up on the fun stuff with Guardian Australia's culture and lifestyle rundown of pop culture, trends and tips after newsletter promotion In the city where the risk is more likely to be dog shit, the shoes-off trend has spread for other reasons. Friends in inner-city apartments in older buildings tell me that it is common for bodies corporate to ask residents to remove their shoes out of consideration to those living below them, so that they don't have to endure the clip-clop of heels on boards as it seems no one has carpet any more. We are still in the beginning of our new shoeless lives, but already there is no turning back. In hindsight, we probably should have eased into this gradually over summer, instead of starting now, when everyone is getting back into boots. As with all change, it's one step at a time.
Irish Times
14-05-2025
- Lifestyle
- Irish Times
Immaculate three-bed with gorgeous garden near Templeogue village for €650,000
Address : 22 Rossmore Crescent, Templeogue, Dublin 6W Price : €650,000 Agent : Sherry FitzGerald Terenure View this property on The shining surfaces of the furniture at 22 Rossmore Crescent in Templeogue are my first clue as to how house-proud its owner is, a fact that becomes more evident as he walks me through this immaculate 94sq m (1,012 sq ft) three-bed semidetached home . On a quiet cul-de-sac, it is in a prime location in the large housing estate as it looks across to a green full of beautiful, aged trees, beyond which is Templeogue Road, accessed by a walkway, which leads you to the village in 10 minutes on foot. To the front, the garden is paved with a one-car driveway and a stepping-stone walkway to the front door. You enter the house into a little porch before stepping into the bright hallway. The livingroom is to the left, with an open fire at its centre, and opens into the dining area of the kitchen/diningroom through glazed doors. Hallway Livingroom Kitchen and dining area Kitchen Sunroom/utility room The owner bought the house in 2004 and has had it replastered, gas heating installed and the internal doors replaced. It has a D1 Ber. READ MORE He also had the wall between the dining area and the kitchen knocked through to create a cohesive, airy space. The kitchen is well laid out with light grey units, an island/breakfast bar, a double fridge-freezer and a shelved corner nook which houses the coffee machine, microwave and dishwasher. There is a small sunroom off the kitchen, used as a utility area with appliances and accoutrements hidden behind cabinets. A glass sliding door in the dining area leads out to the stunning west-facing back garden which, like so many people, the owner spruced up during Covid lockdowns, adding a raised gazebo seating area to the rear of the garden. There is also a shed for storage, a decked patio for al fresco dining and trees and shrubbery adding interest and privacy. Back inside, the bathroom sits at the top of the stairs with the second double bedroom to the rear of the floor, with feature wall panelling behind the bed and ample storage from two walls of built-in wardrobes. The main bedroom sits to the front with built-in storage and a mounted television hidden inside a cupboard for evening viewing. The third bedroom, used primarily as a home office, is a smaller double. Main bedroom Second bedroom Bathroom Back garden Gazebo seating area With the owner and his partner planning to move a bit further out of Dublin to a home with a larger garden so he can further flex his gardening skills, this well-maintained home is on the market through Sherry FitzGerald , seeking €650,000.
