Creating Timeless Homes with Meaning and Modern Ease
Creating Timeless Homes with Meaning and Modern Ease
Life by Haus is a New York–based, full-service interior design firm founded by design historian Jaclyn Houseknecht, M.A. The studio creates timeless, highly considered interiors that respect architectural context while supporting modern living. Each project is guided by scholarship, discipline, and enduring design principles.
Our Mission
At Life by Haus, our mission is to create interiors that honor architectural lineage while elevating the lived experience of contemporary life. Drawing on advanced training from Parsons and a deep commitment to research-driven design, we approach each project with thoughtfulness, rigor, and a respect for the emotional resonance of well-crafted spaces. Our goal is not merely to beautify homes, but to cultivate environments that enrich, inspire, and sustain the people who inhabit them.
DESIGN PHILOSOPHY
Our design philosophy is founded on the principle that every space possesses a narrative shaped by its architecture, history, and inhabitants. Educated in interior design, design history and art history, Jaclyn approaches each project as an interpretive dialogue—balancing tradition with contemporary relevance in ways that feel both timeless and deeply considered.
Jaclyn Yvette Houseknecht
OUR PROCESS
01
Discovery &
Research
02
Concept
Development
03
Design
Refinement
04
Our
Implementation
05
Installation &
Completion
OUR Projects
We work across a diverse range of aesthetics, from historical to coastal to contemporary, yet remain grounded in the enduring principles of proportion, cohesion, and restraint. Our process prioritizes architectural integrity, material authenticity, and intellectual clarity, resulting in interiors that transcend trend and cultivate lasting meaning.
Jaclyn Houseknecht, M.A
My journey into design began long before Life by Haus existed—rooted in an academic fascination with architecture, art history, and the ways spaces shape human experience. My graduate studies at Parsons School of Design deepened that fascination, teaching me to approach interiors not simply as visual compositions, but as cultural artifacts with narrative, lineage, and purpose.
Life by Haus was founded with a singular goal: to create interiors that feel richly lived-in, deeply personal, and intellectually grounded. I believe in spaces that honor their past while serving the needs of modern life—spaces that are both beautiful and meaningful. It is my privilege to bring that vision to each home we touch.