Crochet is fun, but it's much more drape-y than knitting, so what you can do with it is different.

The gloves aren't that hard, but they need to be made carefully -- cuffs, then palm with thumb gusset, then pinky finger, then ring, index and forefinger, finishing off with the end of the thumb. The book really has a lovely pattern in several gauges and sizes.

I used double-pointed needles -- Swallow Caesins, in fact. The faux tortoise-shell is very pretty and works nicely with wool. You need dpns for the fingers, at the very least.

Noro Kureyon is a lovely worsted-weight yarn, and comes in many many colorways. Some are very bright, some are subdued, but they're all gorgeous.

Thanks for the belated birthday greeting. I'm not going to go out tonight, as they're predicting it will get down in the teens. :P