Two women with dark hair and freckles smiling and hugging, one woman wearing a striped shirt and gold earrings, the other in a white sweater.
Black and white graphic of a vintage cassette tape with decorative star shapes.

Our story

Cherry & Thyme is a creative partnership founded by two longtime friends—Akuya Stoddard & Ariana Smoak—with a shared love for photography, event planning, and bringing people together.

Since 2024, we’ve been hosting book clubs, clothing swaps, mixers, and workshops, all with the desire to build community and preserve the joy in creativity.

A black and white icon of a bar of soap with sparkling accents, representing cleanliness or soap.
Black and white stylized icon of a bar of soap with sparkles

We’re building the village

we want our children and their children to be a part of. When you prioritize art, joy, and collaboration, the world becomes a little brighter and we get to love a little louder.

Group of ten young people posing indoors in front of a wall with a projector screen showing a portrait of a woman. They are standing and sitting on a wooden-floored room, dressed casually, smiling, and making various gestures.
A stack of green and white checkered coupons with the words "Photo Book Coupon" and a small image of a camera on them, placed on a white surface. Behind the coupons, there are several books or magazines, with the top one having a black and white cover and orange text reading "Walter Ching".

Follow our journey

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Follow our journey *

A little update 💛
Expect a lot of New York content coming from us … we just had too much fun! Before we went, we made a list of a few places we’d like to go if we had time. Little did we know that on day one we’d already be halfway through our list!
NYC out of context