Don't be afraid to prune

[herbie the love bud]

I've even thought about wrapping the stems/stalk of the plants with something to block the light where I don't want popcorn buds to keep growing after trimming them off. As long as it's somewhat breathable and still blocks the light...

Yes, that is on the right track, however remember that when you block the light to the popcorn buds, it still sucks the energy produced from areas IN the light. So really you need to prune it off.