# Do many people in your area go out and about in their pajamas? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [January 29, 2010, 2:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-many-people-in-your-area-go-out-and-about-in-their-pajamas/526884 "2010-01-29T14:23:28Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![An\_Gadai](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/d6d6ee/32.png) [@An\_Gadai](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/An_Gadai)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2010, 2:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-many-people-in-your-area-go-out-and-about-in-their-pajamas/526884/1 "2010-01-29T14:23:28Z")
Prompted by [this article](http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/wales/8484116.stm) that describes how a Tesco supermarket in Wales has started barring people (nearly invariably women) from wearing slippers and pajamas in their store. It is common enough here, usually working class young women, often young mothers. So have you seen this fashion phenomenon? ---
**Author:** ![Lunchy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/848f3c/32.png) [@Lunchy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lunchy)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2010, 2:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-many-people-in-your-area-go-out-and-about-in-their-pajamas/526884/2 "2010-01-29T14:27:15Z")
In my town in the summer, some younger women will wear pajama pants and tank tops (bra less) to the store. If im there, you wont hear me complaining. ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2010, 2:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-many-people-in-your-area-go-out-and-about-in-their-pajamas/526884/3 "2010-01-29T14:32:38Z")
Never seen it in person, but according to [http://www.peopleofwalmart.com/](http://www.peopleofwalmart.com/) it seems common among scruffier folks in much of the US. I wear what we call a “track suit” (I think the Brits would call it a “shell suit”) around the house when I’m not fully dressed. Dressed that way I’ll go outside as far as the mail box or to take the garbage to curbside, but that’s it. ---
**Author:** ![NinetyWt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/cc9497/32.png) [@NinetyWt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NinetyWt)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2010, 2:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-many-people-in-your-area-go-out-and-about-in-their-pajamas/526884/4 "2010-01-29T14:37:51Z")
It is a running joke around here that you will see people in their “house shoes” at the Walmart. But yeah, occasionally you’ll see someone in the C-store, drugstore or Walmart type place wearing pajama pants and house shoes. Not so much the swankier retail places, or the mall. I’ve not done this but I know my two sons have. ---
**Author:** ![joyfool](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/df788c/32.png) [@joyfool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/joyfool)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2010, 2:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-many-people-in-your-area-go-out-and-about-in-their-pajamas/526884/5 "2010-01-29T14:39:48Z")
Here (around the Dallas, TX. area) I’ve seen it quite a lot, but not typically with slippers. And like **Lunchy** said, it’s mostly paired with tank tops. Doesn’t bother me. 'Cause most those pj pants are cute. ---
**Author:** ![PookahMacPhellimey](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pookahmacphellimey/32/3175_2.png) [@PookahMacPhellimey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PookahMacPhellimey)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2010, 2:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-many-people-in-your-area-go-out-and-about-in-their-pajamas/526884/6 "2010-01-29T14:40:37Z")
No, I think people would rather die. Looks matter in Italy. ---
**Author:** ![enipla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/54ee81/32.png) [@enipla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/enipla)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2010, 2:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-many-people-in-your-area-go-out-and-about-in-their-pajamas/526884/7 "2010-01-29T14:44:34Z")
Never seen it around here. But then the Colorado mountains are a bit chilly and snowy for such antics. Though, to think about it. We all wear shorts in the summer. ---
**Author:** ![Omega\_Glory](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/7c8e57/32.png) [@Omega\_Glory](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Omega_Glory)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2010, 2:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-many-people-in-your-area-go-out-and-about-in-their-pajamas/526884/8 "2010-01-29T14:57:15Z")
I’ve never seen people in slippers, but I see people in their teens and twenties shopping in pajama pants fairly often. My old roommates and I used to do that sometimes when we’d make a late night/very early morning run to the 24 hr grocery store. ---
**Author:** ![MitzeKatze](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ad7895/32.png) [@MitzeKatze](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MitzeKatze)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2010, 2:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-many-people-in-your-area-go-out-and-about-in-their-pajamas/526884/9 "2010-01-29T14:58:30Z")
It’s everywhere here. Young women, old women, and men alike wearing pajamas (often accompanied by house slippers) but it is mostly seen at Wal-Mart and the like. It has gotten so bad that the schools have updated their dress codes to include “no pajamas” and “no slippers” and have gotten a lot of negative feed back because of it. ---
**Author:** ![Silver\_Tyger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/fbc32d/32.png) [@Silver\_Tyger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Silver_Tyger)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2010, 3:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-many-people-in-your-area-go-out-and-about-in-their-pajamas/526884/10 "2010-01-29T15:07:33Z")
When it was raining here, I saw young ladies wandering around in their slippers (no pajama bottoms, that I noticed). This is a college campus. The only thing I could think is ‘you’re going to ruin your slippers!’ ---
**Author:** ![JuliaSqueezer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/82dd89/32.png) [@JuliaSqueezer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JuliaSqueezer)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2010, 3:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-many-people-in-your-area-go-out-and-about-in-their-pajamas/526884/11 "2010-01-29T15:14:00Z")
Just the other day, in fact. Normally, it’s teenage girls. So unique and quirky! as they all troop along in identical plaid pajama bottoms. This time, in a Meijer’s (like a Kmart) in Michigan, I stand next to a middle aged guy at the checkout. A bit overweight, grey hair, in pajama bottoms, boots and a winter jacket. It was very cold outside, so I doubt his jammies were keeping his legs warm. It had to be his very own unique and quirky fashion statement. Or mental illness. ---
**Author:** ![Grrr](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/grrr/32/146_2.png) [@Grrr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grrr)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2010, 3:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-many-people-in-your-area-go-out-and-about-in-their-pajamas/526884/12 "2010-01-29T15:19:12Z")
I’m a guy and I do it. But it’s usually in the early morning when I know there are just a handful of people there. Plus I’m on a first name basis with all the cashiers there anyway so I feel rather comfortable. (after seeing this in print; I think I might be half off my rocker. Oh, well.) ---
**Author:** ![TruCelt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/trucelt/32/523_2.png) [@TruCelt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TruCelt)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2010, 3:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-many-people-in-your-area-go-out-and-about-in-their-pajamas/526884/13 "2010-01-29T15:20:31Z")
It’s not at all uncommon to see both men and women in flannel “pants” which look like what we called pajamas when I was a kid. I just bought two pair last night, in fact, because I thought they looked a little bit nicer than going out in sweatpants, and I’d be able to pair them with a sweater. I haven’t seen people out in house slippers, although I’d say my crocs aren’t too far above that on the “dress” scale. But then, I’m infamous for not giving a flying farina how I look. I’m clean and well-groomed, don’t get me wrong, you wouldn’t mistake me for homeless, but sweatpants to the grocery store? I really don’t see the problem. ---
**Author:** ![Fuzzy\_Dunlop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/848f3c/32.png) [@Fuzzy\_Dunlop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fuzzy_Dunlop)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2010, 3:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-many-people-in-your-area-go-out-and-about-in-their-pajamas/526884/14 "2010-01-29T15:20:40Z")
> [@Silver Tyger Girl](#): > > When it was raining here, I saw young ladies wandering around in their slippers (no pajama bottoms, that I noticed). This is a college campus. The only thing I could think is ‘you’re going to ruin your slippers!’ I used to employ about 5-8 college students at a time doing office work and other fairly menial things. Nowadays I just have 1-2 students doing actual internships, and they always dress nicely. The part-time office work students always came as they were and one time I had a guy try to show up in pajama bottoms and slippers. Actually, he successfully showed up in pajamas and slippers, he just failed to work in them because I made him go home and get dressed. ---
**Author:** ![Oredigger77](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/oredigger77/32/3181_2.png) [@Oredigger77](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Oredigger77)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2010, 3:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-many-people-in-your-area-go-out-and-about-in-their-pajamas/526884/15 "2010-01-29T15:42:23Z")
I’ll throw on some sweat pants and sandals and go to the store which is basically the same thing. I’ve seen girls doing the pajamas pants thing and I generally like it. ---
**Author:** ![An\_Gadai](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/d6d6ee/32.png) [@An\_Gadai](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/An_Gadai)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2010, 4:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-many-people-in-your-area-go-out-and-about-in-their-pajamas/526884/16 "2010-01-29T16:10:14Z")
> [@LSLGuy](#): > > I wear what we call a “track suit” (I think the Brits would call it a “shell suit”) around the house when I’m not fully dressed. Dressed that way I’ll go outside as far as the mail box or to take the garbage to curbside, but that’s it. We call them track suits too. The people around here who wear pajamas in public will otherwise wear a track suit. ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Whisperer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cat_whisperer/32/4839_2.png) [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2010, 4:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-many-people-in-your-area-go-out-and-about-in-their-pajamas/526884/17 "2010-01-29T16:34:51Z")
Not many, no. I’ll occasionally see someone in flannel pants that look suspiciously like pajama pants, but they may have actually bought them as going out pants, not pajamas. Slippers - never. I have to say, I truly hate the idea of people going out in their pajamas and slippers - maybe it’s just my age speaking, but going out in public involves getting dressed, dammit. (Would those of you who don’t have a location mind telling us where you’re talking about? This is pretty vague if it’s done in your location, but we don’t know where that is.) ---
**Author:** ![yuliya](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/f6c823/32.png) [@yuliya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yuliya)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2010, 4:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-many-people-in-your-area-go-out-and-about-in-their-pajamas/526884/18 "2010-01-29T16:35:07Z")
> [@PookahMacPhellimey](#): > > No, I think people would rather die. > > Looks matter in Italy. I came into this thread to say: I’m Italian, so I’d rather eat a live turtle. ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Whisperer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cat_whisperer/32/4839_2.png) [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2010, 4:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-many-people-in-your-area-go-out-and-about-in-their-pajamas/526884/19 "2010-01-29T16:38:25Z")
I will also say that I have not bought clothes because they looked too much like pajamas - I don’t care if sweat suits are just as comfortable as pajamas, you shouldn’t just roll out of bed and head out to do some shopping. ---
**Author:** ![alice\_in\_wonderland](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alice_in_wonderland/32/176_2.png) [@alice\_in\_wonderland](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/alice_in_wonderland)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2010, 5:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-many-people-in-your-area-go-out-and-about-in-their-pajamas/526884/20 "2010-01-29T17:37:19Z")
I have a funny story… A few months before our wedding hubby and I were at his parents house in the middle of the afternoon on a Saturday. I hadn’t really wanted to go and I felt pretty crappy (I seem to recall period cramps or something). Anyway, I had slumped out of the house in PJ pants, a sweat top, runners and hair in a ponytail because the plan was that I would nap on their sofa while he helped his dad with something. So, I was napping, and his mom came downstairs to where I was and asked if I wanted to go shoe shopping. I said no, that I wasn’t feeling that well, we were saving $$ for the wedding, etc. She said ‘I’ll buy.’ So yes, I went to the CheckMate semi annual shoe sale while wearing PJ pants, a sweat top, runners and hair in a ponytail. Good to her word, MIL bought me two (_TWO!_) pairs of shoes. Fortunatly there were no photos taken so I can just pretend the whole thing never happened. Anyhow - yes, you do occasionally see folks wandering around Walmart etc in PJ pants. And, occasionally the CheckMate shoe store. 😛 [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-many-people-in-your-area-go-out-and-about-in-their-pajamas/526884.md?page=2)