Translation
I'm Heather Eason, an experienced, accredited translator who uses a passion for language and an eye for detail to deliver top-quality, reliable translations in French, English and Esperanto, with 18 years' experience in politics, business and tourism translation:
- Step-by-step advice on the whole translation process
- Clear, upfront pricing
- Expert solutions to your language challenges
You are:
- A business communicating with customers and co-workers globally
- An SME, social enterprise or charity expanding your business horizons
- An individual needing official translations
- An agency looking for experienced, quality translators
French
French to English Translation
US to UK
Localization
Esperanto
English and French into Esperanto | Esperanto into English
French to English
Your French to English expert for:
tourism: Around 13 million* tourists visit France each year from the UK alone, with many more globally looking for English-language travel information to plan their stay. Millions also visit other Francophone countries.
English-language translations of your website and brochures will give you a significant competitive edge in reaching these potential customers.
policy/government: All policy, government, political documents, with particular expertise in devolved administrations
social partnership: trades unions, business representative organizations and public sector bodies
housing: Are your property adverts reaching your potential buyers? Capture the attention of an English-speaking audience and accurately convey the beauty of the properties that you have for sale.
certificates: birth, marriage, divorce, livrets de famille, etc. and all related personal documents, certified for the official UK authorities.
US to UK
The UK is the fifth largest market for US goods worldwide and 82% of UK internet users have shopped online. So it makes sense to maximize your opportunities with targeted language.
You probably already know that we call a "sidewalk" a "pavement", that we spell "color" as "colour" and that your "pants" are our "trousers"; but did you also know that we "touch wood" rather than "knock on wood", that we have "holidays" and not "vacations" and that our "first floor" is your second? And that's before we even start talking about weights and measurements, punctuation conventions or education systems, to name only a few.
And it's not just language! With devolved Assemblies in Wales and Northern Ireland and a separate Parliament in Scotland, it's never been more important to make sure that your website and marketing materials factor in the policy and legislative differences and diverse points of view throughout the UK.
In most cases, I'll work directly from your existing documents or website code, so no need for subsequent re-formatting and coding.
Esperanto
Could Esperanto lead you into new markets?
With proficient Esperanto speakers in more than 120 countries worldwide, many of them professionals in a wide range of businesses, an Esperanto translation of your website / brochures / advertisements could lead you into new markets.
Contact me for a sensible discussion about the opportunities for using Esperanto in your business.
PRICING
Detailed and itemised quotations given for all projects, but to give you an idea, here are some examples:
Translation
From £0.10 per source word
Certificates
£20 per certificate page
Language Services
£35 per hour: language consultancy, proofreading, and more...
About Me
I often like to picture myself sitting in a little café, just off the Boulevard Saint-Germain in Paris, stylishly sipping a petit café and effortlessly crafting majestic French phrases into their perfectly-shaped English equivalents. Sometimes that's true, but in reality I'm usually to be found in Cardiff, South Wales as the rain pours down outside my window.
My obsession with all things French started as a child. Generally, it came down to nosiness. I wanted to decipher the story of the cute little teddy bear in the French picture book sent to my mother by a penfriend. Languages became my 'thing' and I'm still nosey about everything language-related! These days I channel my obsession into bringing up-to-date language and cultural skills to my customers!
For more information, see my Profile, or have a look at my blog to see what I've been doing to keep my language and business skills up to date.
Growing up, our house was often full of international visitors - my parents spoke Esperanto and often had visitors from many countries. In those days I was far more interested in the exotic treats and presents they brought with them. Later I realised what a global perspective it gave me.
My mother named me 'Heather' to remember the Scottish Highlands where her ancestors originated, where heather is a common sight on the hills. Soon her friends were asking how 'the little sprig of heather' was getting along - and the name stuck!
PROFILE
Qualifications
- Diploma in Translation, Chartered Institute of Linguists
- BA (Hons) French Studies, University of Warwick (specializing in politics and linguistics)
Experience
- 17 years of translation experience for businesses large and small, private individuals and social enterprises/non-profits
- 15 years of experience as a policy advisor with particular expertise in social partnership and devolved administrations
- Former tourism professional, specialized in brochure, website and app translation
Professional Memberships
I belong to the following organizations and adhere to their professional Codes of Practice.
- Chartered Institute of Linguists (Code of Professional Conduct)
- Institute of Translation and Interpreting (Code of Professional Conduct)
- ITI Cymru Wales
- Chartered Institute of Editing and Proofreading (Code of Practice)
CPD
I'm committed to Continuing Professional Development and undertake regular CPD activities each week to keep my language and business skills up to date, including reading widely in all my working languages and subject fields; webinars; meetings/conferences; reflection and review. Contact me if you'd like to know more.
Quality | Confidentiality | ExpertiseCustomer Stories
See how Sprig of Heather's customers have found the experience by reading some of their stories below:
Anaïs's Story
Anaïs, an English to French translator, needed to have a document translated in the 'other direction' from French to English. Having had my contact details from a mutual acquaintance, she contacted me for an estimate. We agreed terms and a delivery date and Anaïs gave me the go-ahead to get on with the translation.
"It was a real pleasure to work with Heather! She is professional, communicative and produces excellent quality work. I won't hesitate to contact her again for future projects."Anaïs Olmos
Anaïs was also really great to work for! And if you ever need an English to French translator, you can find her by clicking here.
Donna's Story
Donna needed to apply for a new UK passport. However, she’d recently got married in France and so she needed a translation of her French marriage certificate into English. The British passport office, along with other UK public bodies, has regulations regarding the translation of certificates and Donna needed someone who was accredited to handle these.
When Donna contacted me at Sprig of Heather, I took her through the process. Donna sent me a scan of her certificate, making the process faster for her, and I quoted my usual tariff of £20 per certificate page. I explained that I would provide a cover sheet to certify the accuracy of the translation; meeting Passport Office requirements that translations be carried out by a member of the Chartered Institute of Linguists or other accredited body.
I can usually turn translations like this round within 48 hours and, on this occasion, managed to fit it in within 24 hours. I returned the translation as an emailed PDF and we decided that I’d also send a hard copy translation in the post for Donna’s records – first class postage is included in the translation fee.
"Heather at sprigofheather.co.uk was absolutely wonderful! I needed my marriage certificate translated from French to English for a new passport. Her service was extremely fast and accurate and I was so pleased with the result. Good correspondence from the outset and absolute professionalism all the way. I would highly recommend this service." Donna Guérin
Once Donna confirmed that she was happy with the translation, she paid via Paypal and was able to get on with her passport application with all the paperwork in place.
Chris's Story
Chris is a self-taught artist from Cardiff, South Wales, who is living with Asperger's Syndrome. He sells his amazing pencil drawings at Comic Conventions and craft markets, as well as online.
Chris and his parents realised that they were missing out on opportunities to communicate with the many overseas tourists visiting their stall at the various craft markets, and approached Sprig of Heather for language advice and consultancy.
We worked together to produce multilingual information about Chris and his work ready for the Cardiff Christmas Market in 2019.
"A very helpful, friendly and reliable service. Heather will always go above and beyond. I was using the translation on day one of receiving it - by day two the information helped me make a sale! I would recommend Heather's services."
Why not contact me for a chat about how we can work together to communicate with your potential clients.
Sally's Story
As the extent of the Covid-19 pandemic started to become clear in March 2020, a psychology team at Sussex Partnership NHS Foundation Trust contacted me about a resource that they were developing. The resource focused on strategies to help people cope with anxiety and was designed to be inclusive of people with neurological conditions, such as those living with dementia and their carers, families and friends.
Dr Sally Stapleton was keen to know whether I could help with making the resource availble in other languages. With assistance from the ITI Wales and Cardiff Translator networks, I was able to quickly pull together a team of professional translators to help. It was a huge privilege to work with such a talented and dedicated group of professionals.
You can download the resource at https://copingresources.org
"The work that Heather has coordinated in such a short timescale has been phenomenal. To have a document be made accessible to so many people, not just in the UK, but across the world via the website, has so much potential to offer tangible mental health support during this global pandemic."
FAQS
Quick answers to frequent queries
You don't need to know anything - I'll talk you through the process when you contact me for a quote. But if you commission translations frequently, you may find that this excellent guide gives you some useful background information: Translation Getting it Right
CONTACT ME
Phone or text: +44 (0)7913 819923
Skype
Or send me a a message using the form below: