LEARN THE DESK / PATTERNS
Candlestick patterns: body, wick and context
Explore candle shapes interactively and learn why a hammer or long wick does not establish a reliable prediction.
Understand the shape before its name
The body runs between open and close. The upper wick reaches the high; the lower wick reaches the low. A long lower wick means price traded lower and then closed away from that low. Context—trend, session, nearby levels and sample size—matters more than a memorable pattern name.
Try it with your own numbers
Local calculation only. These inputs are illustrative, not live quotes. Nothing you enter is uploaded.
Worked example
Open $100, high $102, low $95, close $101 gives a $1 body, $1 upper wick and $5 lower wick. The lower wick is five times the body, but this geometry alone does not prove a reversal.
The calculation
Body = |close − open|; upper wick = high − max(open, close); lower wick = min(open, close) − low.Method and references
Arithmetic is shown above so you can reproduce the result. Indicator background: J. Welles Wilder, New Concepts in Technical Trading Systems (1978); John Bollinger, Bollinger on Bollinger Bands (2001). These references explain methods, not a claim that TickSPY predicts prices.
Exercises use the values you enter, not a hidden market feed. Examples demonstrate mechanics; they are not evidence of profitability. Reviewed October 11, 2026.
What this cannot tell you
This exercise measures candle geometry rather than claiming a pattern success rate. Historical reliability needs a defined pattern, holding period, benchmark and out-of-sample test.