In the fall of 1944, in Brunswick, Maine, L.L.Bean made a heavy canvas bag called the Ice Carrier. Its job was to get block ice from the distributor to the ice chest at home, which is about as unglamorous as a bag can be. It disappeared from the catalog after one season and came back in the summer of 1965 as the Boat and Tote.

The brand itself began in 1912 with Leon Leonwood Bean, a hunter who put leather uppers on rubber bottoms and called the result the Maine Hunting Shoe. It did not go well at first: 90 of the first 100 pairs came back. He refunded them, fixed the problem and kept going, and I think you can feel that stubbornness in the L.L.Bean tote today. It is built to carry things, and the rest is a happy accident.

The first shelf is the open-top, the shape most people picture. The Medium in blue is the one I would start with: natural canvas, blue handles and bottom trim, roomy enough for a laptop and a sweater. The Medium in antique olive and the Medium in black are quieter, and the black reads almost city. The Large in natural is the weekend bag, and the Extra-Large in dark green is for the car trunk, a farmers market run or a week of beach gear. The Small in red is the cheerful one, and the Medium in mauve is the surprise.

Check the size before the color, because the dimensions are listed and they matter. The Medium is 12 inches tall and 13 wide, and the Large is 15 by 17. Pick the one that fits what you actually carry on a Tuesday.

The zip is the whole reason to pick this version. It is the same heavy 24 oz. cotton canvas as the open-top, handcrafted in Maine, but with a closure for the days your bag rides on a train seat or under a plane seat. In October, with a scarf and a book stuffed in, I would want that zip.

The Medium in blue and the Medium in antique olive are the ones I would reach for first, since they hold a work bag's worth of things without looking like luggage. The Large in black is the more grown-up pick, and the Large in regatta blue is the travel version for holiday weekends. The Small in natural is a good errand bag, and the Medium in dark green wears well with a camel coat.

Two more have an outside pocket and matching handles: the Medium in solid blue and the Medium in solid natural. The pocket is where I would keep a phone and keys so I am not digging through canvas at the door.

Before you buy, run the zip all the way along the top and look at how the canvas sits when it is closed, because this bag is stiff by design. What I would skip: the Small if you carry a full-size laptop, since it will not close over it.

Canvas is stiff, so the handle length decides whether a tote actually works on your shoulder. The open-top version has short handles that sit in your hand, and plenty of people want something that goes over a winter coat. This is the shelf for that.

The Tall Small comes in black, blue, dark green and natural. It is taller than the Small tote, with handles that fit comfortably over the shoulder, per the product page, so it works as an everyday bag without the bulk of the Large. The black one is the one I would take to an office, and the natural reads like a bakery run.

Then there are the long-handle versions of the classic shapes: the open-top Medium in red with long handles and the zip-top Large in antique olive with long handles. The red one is the one I would wear with a navy knit and denim. The two Japan Edition market totes, in dusty olive and natural, are a different animal: soft, lightweight canvas, an embroidered logo and long handles, 13 inches tall and 15 wide.

Hold the strap against your coat sleeve and check that it clears the bulk. What I would skip: the Japan Edition if you want the structured look, because that one is soft and slouchy.

L.L.Bean tote history has a fun side detail: the mark of distinction is a custom monogram, and Down East magazine notes that Gwyneth Paltrow's bag says Apple, her daughter's name. People have been turning a utility bag into a private joke for decades, so the printed ones here make sense.

The blue LLB Chelt print has navy handles and a red screen-printed logo. The Original in green has green trim and a screen-printed graphic. The Mountain Classic has a retro printed pattern on the handles, and the Lobster has navy trim and an embroidered red lobster, which is the most Maine thing on the page. The Jess Franks wildflower embroidery is the sweet one, and the large vertical navy L.L.Bean logo is the confident one.

For seasonal color, the open-top Medium in fig and in vintage rose both suit the fall light. I would carry the fig one with a charcoal coat and the vintage rose one with a cream knit.

Look at the stitching on an embroidered tote and make sure the thread lies flat against the canvas. What I would skip: the loud logo in a room where you want to blend in, unless you like being recognized.

Small is where this bag gets playful. The Mini is 7 inches tall and 10 wide, and the Micro is 3.5 by 5, so you are choosing between a lunch bag and a keychain.

The open-top Mini comes in blue, dark green and fig, all with matching handles and trim. The zip-top Minis in dark green and slate are better if you actually want to keep things inside, and the slate one goes with almost anything gray. They fit a phone, a wallet, a lip balm and a little more.

The Micro Tote Bag in thyme and in weathered oak is a tiny zip-top canvas pouch shaped like a tote, with a carabiner clip. Clip it on a belt loop or to your regular tote and it holds earbuds and a card. The Everyday Lightweight Tote Mini in darkest navy is nylon, not canvas, with a zip top and an open outside pocket, so it is the one for rain.

Think about whether you want a bag or an accessory. What I would skip: the Micro if you hope to carry a phone, since the listing says it is for small items.

I would start with the Medium open-top in blue, because it is the one people recognize. If I commuted by train, I would add the zip-top Medium in antique olive. For October and holiday weekends, the Large in natural gets the call.

Look for the V-point closures on the underside, which the brand calls the key indicator of a real one. Then check the size against what you carry, pick a color, and think about a monogram.

It started as a way to get ice home in 1944, and now it is how I would get a laptop and a sweater to the train. Not a bad second life for a bag with a lobster on it.