Hi there! I am going to be working on a sailor theme cake and just wanted to hear some input on how others would create the red yarn pom pom on the top of the sailor cap (see pic). What would you use/do to create the yarn texture on a gumpaste/fondant ball?

AI would use an extruded to produce lots of little bunches of "yarn" with one of the multi hole inserts. You could probably do it by pushing the paste through a sieve too. Then just pop the bunches together in a ball shape. You'll probably lose some of the texture as you stick it together, but you could use a tool to tease the strands apart again.

Of course, I don't know how big you want this. The technique would depend on the size of the finished object!

I did Santa's fur (and hat ball) by taking the rolled fondant and then taking a pair of tiny cuticle scissors and just nipping randomly, it turned out great.

I'd use a garlic press to produce the yarn and stick them onto a red ball of paste. You can use a pair of scissors to cut them down to size.