The best time to wear a striped sweater is all the tiiiime~

Lol, anyway, I need help with a sweater. I think I'm considered an intermediate knitter, but I have no idea how to knit short rows and I'm terrified of socks. I haven't given those a try yet. Maybe I'm advanced beginner? I have made a sweater before using the Knifty Knitter Knitting Loom, but I wanna try with my circular needles.

I know where to start, but I have no idea how to shape the neckline. I was just thinking about knitting the body and arms separately so I could pick up the stitches and knit so I could make the neck and start decreasing. You know what I mean by that, right? Pick up stitches around the body and armholes and start knitting. I was going to knit a small doll sized sweater to see if it would work.

If anyone has any other ideas, I'd like to hear them :3