Already itching to get your hands on AW16 pieces? With our guidance, the trends of the future are closer than you think.

You may not be aware of this, but there’s currently something of a seismic shift happening in the style world. It began with Burberry announcing, at the beginning of February 2016, that it will no longer debut its collections six months in advance of the drop date. Instead, the British brand will be mounting two fashion shows per year, combining both men’s and women’s collections, from which everything is instantly shoppable. Shortly after this carefully staged news splash, both Tom Ford and Parisian buzz brand Vetements announced they would be doing the same. The message is clear: these days, people barely have enough patience to contend with a sluggish Wi-Fi connection, so why on earth would they wait six months for a new jacket? Of course, the rest of the industry hasn’t quite caught up with all this – for most brands, the products shown this January haven’t become magically available overnight. However, to get in the spirit of the whole thing, you can still have a go at shopping some of AW16 trends now, providing you make some well-informed choices from the selection currently available on MR PORTER. Shop the below edit, and consider yourself thoroughly future-proofed. At least until the next bright idea comes along, and we start stockpiling clothes for spring 2019.

It’s odd to think that hundreds of years of carnage and aggression have led to such genteel things as the chino, or the trench coat. But there it is – military clothing has long formed a backbone to the wardrobe of the modern man and, provided world peace doesn’t break out before September, its influence looks set to continue for AW16, particularly in outerwear – as showcased by Jil Sander, Public School and Rag & Bone, among others. One of the key pieces of this trend is the flight jacket, by which in this instance we mean a souped-up bomber with all the appropriate military details (multiple pockets being key, especially a zipped one on the arm). And luckily, Japanese brand Beams Plus has issued its own sturdy version in two-tone wool flannel that little bit earlier than everyone else. This will look particularly striking with other grey tones, in particular of the faded variety much-loved by Swedish brand Our Legacy.

We at MR PORTER do like it when a much-maligned item of clothing comes groaning back from sartorial iniquity and reasserts itself as the key piece of the season. And this, of course, is what has happened with the zip-up track top for AW16. At least if Burberry and Gucci have any say in the matter. The former show in particular was stuffed full of interesting varieties with oversized zips and brilliant-white arm stripes, while the latter offered examples in the loud, 1970s-tinged patterns we have come to expect from the brand’s creative director, Mr Alessandro Michele. The above example from Y-3 offers a stealthier take on this upcoming trend, with its minimal branding and black-on-black hardware. Plus, it’s available now, rather than in six months’ time, which is always a bonus. Wear it with a pair of matching sneakers and some utilitarian cargo trousers from Chalayan.

The AW16 collections were full of side-striped trousers, which appeared on the runways of Neil Barrett, Dries Van Noten and Alexander McQueen, to name a few. Seen one way, this is another military detail – particularly at McQueen, where the red side-stripe brought to mind the uniform of American officers during WWII. Seen another, it’s a little bit reminiscent of the adidas tracksuit circa 1970, an influence that is also hovering imposingly over the coming season (see above for more on zip-up track tops). Whichever way you decide to think about it, it’s probably time you got a pair, just in case. Valentino creative directors Mr Pierpaolo Piccioli and Ms Maria Grazia Chiuri have proven themselves particularly ahead of the curve this spring by issuing the above example, which comes highly recommended. Keep it razor-sharp by wearing with a neat denim jacket from Bottega Veneta.

High-end goods that look like they’ve been dragged through a hedge backwards have been coming in and out of style since the 1980s, when Japanese innovators such as Ms Rei Kawakubo of Comme des Garçons and Mr Yohji Yamamoto introduced the world to the sartorial concept of “deconstruction”. The seasonal update for AW16? Yes, distressing is back on the agenda, whether it’s in raw, unfinished hemlines, ripped jeans, laddered knitwear or, as in Mr Thom Browne’s latest show, entire outfits that had been thoroughly and ingeniously weathered. Mr Hedi Slimane, ever the tastemaker, has of course been doing this kind of thing for Saint Laurent for several seasons now, but his latest distressed offerings for spring 2016 are particularly eye catching. It’s a toss-up whether we prefer the tie-dye sweater with holes in it, or the above dip-dyed shirt with its ragged hem. But either will make you seem both prescient and nonchalantly stylish as we roll into high summer. Wear with some washed jeans and a pair of caramel-coloured Converse, which will nicely complement the shirt’s sun-kissed tones.

For all those who have had enough of shearling, it’s probably time to scroll down. Because, for the coming winter, it’s back – and it’s bigger and better than ever. It’s shear madness! From Bottega Veneta to Neil Barrett to Coach, everyone seemed to be having a go at the shearling jacket at the January shows. Or the shearling coat. Or even – at Dolce & Gabbana – the shearling trouser. It has therefore never been a better time to invest in a shearling jacket. And there are a few that come at a more palatable price point than the above example from J.Crew. Wear it with some sturdy selvedge jeans and a grey sweatshirt, and feel like an off-duty air-force pilot circa 1950.

Continuing the mania for all things 1970s that arguably has been spearheaded, in the past few seasons, by the visionary nostalgia of Mr Alessandro Michele at Gucci, the AW16 collections frequently turned to one colour in particular: brown. On the downside this particular shade, a sort of dark caramel, is probably not for everybody, having a decidedly retro feel to it, especially when it’s used for shirts or trousers. On the upside, though, there is an easier and more immediate way to wear it in 2016, and that’s through purchasing the above field jacket from British brand Private White V.C. Here the colour has more of a country feel, making it acceptable for almost all occasions. Give it just a hint of 1970s swagger with some complementary Chelsea boots.

One of the highlights of the AW16 shows was the invite from Dolce & Gabbana – you opened it up, saw cacti and desert, and then, as if by magic, a little tune by Mr Ennio Morricone started playing on a tiny speaker. Not only was this a delightful surprise, but a mood-setter for the shows to come, which featured a glut of adventurous, ruggedly American and veritably Wild West-worthy clothing. Valentino delivered particularly well on this front, proposing a series of plaids and geometric-patterned blanket jackets that brought to mind classic North American woollen mills such as Pendleton and Hudson’s Bay Company. We at MR PORTER can’t wait to get our hands on this stuff, which is why we will be jumping on this boat early with the above ranch-inspired print shirt from Mr Ralph Lauren’s outdoorsy brand RRL. Complete the ranch look with a pair of hardy boots from Milwaukee-based brand Thorogood.