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Longhouse - Tokavaig, Skye (2001) This 130 square metre house at Tokavaig is based on the proportions, form and siting of a traditional Highland longhouse. It has retained some of the principles of the old, but is unmistakably modern.
The linear form allows the house to slot into the hillside, cutting down heat loss from the action of the wind. It has been orientated to exploit the various views and to track the passage of the sun throughout the day and year. The floor slab is used as storage heating and in spring, summer and autumn the main space is heated through the south-west facing low-e glazing.
Internally the house reflects the open-plan nature of the longhouse. The central fire helps heat the living room which looks over to the Cuillins and also the huge kitchen dining room which overlooks Canna, Rhum and, on a clear day, Barra. The house has two bedrooms and two bathrooms and a further two attic bedrooms accessed off a ladder stair. |
