Kitchens - what style? And are island units worth it?

[fimblespants]

I am very lucky to be planning a new kitchen. ITs pretty big, with a large eating/family area and faces south west so should be nice and light (house not built yet). I want a modern, fresh kitchen - but nothing too NEw York loft! - any ideas people? Also.dh keeps on about an island unit. I don't realy need the extra storage (though of course it will get used!) and can't help thinking it will just get bashed by the kids and clumsy ol' me will bump into it constantly. Can any of you convince me?

Bumping for evening crowd...

i love my new island, my kitchen is big, knocked the kitchen/dining wall down. So I have a little sink on the oven side, to drain pasta/veg etc, have the microwave built into it, have drawers and a cupboard. Have two sockets on one end, so can do my food preparation on there too, mixers etc. At the other end the granite hangs over slightly and the boys sit on stools to eat. You need to ensure you have enough space to move around it, but if you have the space it's great.