We had similar issues with our old kitchen. The old cabinets had the most ghastly, oversized handles smack dab in the middle of the cabinet doors... No one ever used them, and all the doors had corners where the finish, and part of the wood had worn off from handling.
When my husband built cabinets and remodeled the kitchen... We chose simple metal knobs for our cabinet and drawer fronts. We find that we always use the knob because it is convenient to use and in the right spot. Our garbage can is on a roll out under the kitchen sink.
We used soft close roll out shelves for every lower cabinet and all the pantry shelves below eye level. Because we had lived in the house for 18 years, we knew how we used the kitchen an were able to make great design decisions based on that knowledge.
Good luck with your kitchen remodel. Hope you end up as happy as we are.