Read the Lines · Candlestick patterns
Candlestick patterns,
explained in plain English.
Learn what common candlestick patterns actually record about price behaviour on ASX charts — what buyers and sellers did, why context matters, and why no candle can predict the next move on its own.
This BowerLine library explains universal candlestick concepts through an Australian-market lens. Each lesson separates observation from interpretation, shows where a pattern can become more meaningful, and explains the situations in which the same pattern can fail.
How to use this library
Describe first. Interpret second. Predict last.
A candlestick is a compact record of price behaviour over a chosen period. Its body shows the relationship between the open and close, while its wicks show how far price travelled before the period ended. Patterns become useful only when you combine that shape with context such as the prior trend, nearby price levels, volume, liquidity and what happens next.
BowerLine does not treat a hammer, doji, engulfing candle or any other pattern as an automatic buy or sell signal. The goal is to understand what the chart recorded and what evidence would strengthen or weaken an interpretation.
Candlestick pattern library
Explore the patterns.
Each lesson explains the candle or sequence in plain English, what buyer and seller behaviour could create it, where it matters on an ASX chart, what confirmation can look like and how the same pattern can fail.
Hammer
Long lower wick after a decline: sellers pushed lower, buyers recovered much of the move.
Inverted Hammer
Long upper wick after weakness: buyers tested higher prices and may be starting to respond.
Hanging Man
Hammer-shaped candle after an advance that can warn of sudden selling pressure.
Shooting Star
Long upper wick after a rise: higher prices were tested and rejected before the close.
Doji
Open and close are almost equal, often recording balance, hesitation or indecision.
Spinning Top
Small body with upper and lower wicks showing two-way movement without clear control.
Bullish Engulfing
A stronger positive second body overwhelms the prior negative body after weakness.
Bearish Engulfing
A stronger negative second body overwhelms the prior positive body after an advance.
Harami
A large body followed by a small body inside it, showing a sudden contraction in conviction.
Piercing Line
A bullish two-candle recovery that closes deeply into the prior negative body.
Dark Cloud Cover
A bearish two-candle reversal that closes deeply into the prior positive body.
Morning Star
Three candles showing strong selling, contraction, then a strong buyer response.
Evening Star
Three candles showing strong buying, contraction, then a strong seller response.
9:00 AM · BOWERLINE PRO
Coffee. Market. Connected.
What stood out. The evidence behind it. What happened next.
Your morning BowerLine briefing.
Important information: Read the Lines provides general educational content about market concepts. It does not provide financial product advice or recommendations, does not consider your objectives, financial situation or needs, and does not tell you whether to buy, sell or hold a financial product. Examples are used to explain concepts and are not forecasts or recommendations about a security.
BowerLine 