I have learned, during my travels, that just about anything with a flat surface can be a candle holder.  In India we used shallow clay bowls (taking out from under potted plates) and small metal snack plates, and in Ukraine I used small inexpensive plastic plates.

Candle holders are basically of two types: those you put a candle ON, and those you put a candle IN.

It is important that your candle holder be made of non-flammable material.  In a pinch, you could mold one from aluminum foil, or use any flat, solid object, and attach the candle with hot, dripped wax: a or bowl works, but so will a jar lid or anything of similar size and shape. In the photos below, you see the large fired clay bowls we took out from under our potted plants at the LCECU; they had the added advantage of functioning as egg holders (cartons are not commonly used in India).

In the UP (Upper Peninsula of Michigan) we used all sorts of plates and bowls; this one was a particular favorite, as scalloped edges doubled as quite nice stylus holders:

At times I’ve simply used metal jar lids as candle holders.  This is one I made from a marmalade jar lid in Western Australia:

A local Ukrainian woman’s group uses metal jar lids like these as candle holders for their classes; however, they hot glue the candle to the lid for one time use.

I still prefer, when possible, to use dedicated candle holders.  They tend to be more stable, and grip the candle better than ad hoc ones.

For pysankarstvo, choose holders that have a low center of gravity, both for convenience (not having to reach up high to heat the stylus) and for safety (less likely to tip over).

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Make sure the candle is firmly in place and not wobbly.  I use hot candle wax to set the candle into the holder.  First I light the candle, and carefully hold it over the holder, allowing hot wax to drip in.

Once some wax has built up in the depression in the candle holder (left), I lower the candle into it, and hold it in place, in the proper position, until the wax hardens (right).

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