if you are looking for my granny stitch planned pooling photo tutorial that i wrote, it can be found here:
https://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/granny-stitch-pl...

the following info is for the hook size i used with my tension. it may vary for you.

color sequence:
red orange (6)
blue (6)
pale peach (6)
maroon (6)
navy (6)

i planned out how i wanted the pattern of colors to look, so instead of starting with one color and going all the way through, i decided to start in the middle of the red and end in the middle of the red. this gave me the look that i wanted to achieve. so it will look like two pillars of the golden gate bridge extending out from the sides. i also wanted the blanket edge to start with half and full diamonds.

the even rows (2,4,6…) will always have one more cluster than the odd rows (1, 3 5…) so you are able to keep the same number of clusters in each color and still maintain one stitch off on every other row.

i started the first row with a dc in red then 3 granny clusters in red. i ended row 1 with 3 granny clusters in red and one dc in red. i started row 2 with 3 granny clusters in red, then 6 blue, and so on.

the first row (and all of the odd rows) will begin and end with 1dc.
the second row (and every even row) will have 3dc clusters all the way across.

granny stripe pattern with the planned pooling technique:

to determine your chain length:
make a chain as long or as wide as you want your project to be. unless you did a test swatch beforehand and you know exactly how many clusters each color will be, make a longer chain than you think you need. you can undo unused chains later. the length needed for your chain depends on how many half or full color sequences you are using for your pattern. for example, in this pattern, i used 2 full color sequence repeats.
i had 5 colors in my yarn and used 6 clusters in each color. 6x5x2=60 clusters. 3 chains per cluster = 180 chains. plus beginning and end dc = about 190 chains.
2 color sequences
5 colors in a sequence
6 clusters in each color
6x5x2x3=180 + extra chains for the beginning and end dc = 190

starting your granny stripe:

row 1: with the beginning of a new color on your hook, ch 3 and dc in the 6th ch from your hook. (this counts as a dc and sk 2 ch). skip 2 ch, * 3dc cluster in next chain, sk 2 ch * , repeat from * to * until the end of your full or half color sequence. end the row with a dc. the last dc should be the same color as the last cluster you just made.
the stand alone dc on the ends of the odd rows do not count as a separate cluster. they are additional. plan to add them into your cluster sequence when on that corresponding color. you may need to tighten your work on that color a bit near those ends to fit this extra dc.

row 2: starting with your next color, chain 3 (counts as dc). 2dc in same space (1 cluster complete). 3dc in each space across until the end.

row 3: continue as you did on row 1, starting with a ch3 as your stand alone dc. 3dc in each space across. end with one dc in the last dc of the 3dc cluster below.

continue with this pattern until you reach your desired size.

i used 16 skeins of golden gate bridge yarn, starting and ending with red in the corners.

i did two rows of granny stitch on top and bottom before going around the entire blanket two more times in granny stitch (4 rows of red in granny stitch on top and bottom and 2 rows on the side). for my last row of border, i used an H hook and did a simple picot edge found in the last two rows of this pattern:
http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/cable-hearts-baby...

if you still need help to get this started, here is a granny stitch planned pooling photo tutorial that i made (using a different yarn, but the same concept):
https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=1854059801501...

PPWC Facebook posts:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/1585936391710370?view=per...
and
https://www.facebook.com/groups/1585936391710370?view=per...
and
https://www.facebook.com/groups/1585936391710370?view=per...
and
https://www.facebook.com/groups/1585936391710370?view=per...

7/5/17
finished blanket was entered into 2017 Marin County Fair (June 30-July 4) and earned a
First Place Blue Ribbon
in the category of:
21 Clothing and Textiles (Adult)
73 Crocheting
5 Any other pattern afghan