Natural ability, talent or knack; as, the columnist's flair for the apt word. Also, stylishness; as, to dress with flair. Old French flairer (to give off an odor or scent).

In the film Office Space, the manager of Tchotchkie's (played by director Mike Judge) berates an employee for not wearing enough flair. She's only wearing 15 pieces of flair -- the bare minimum -- and he wants her to want to wear more of it.

In this case, flair refers specifically to buttons attached to one's suspenders. The ideal, I suppose, is to be unable to see the suspenders at all.

Flair (flar), n. [OE. flaireodor, fr. OF. & F. flair, fr. OF. flairier, F. flairer, to smell, LL. flagrare for L. fragrare. See Flagrant.]

1.

Smell; odor. [Obs.]

2.

Sense of smell; scent; fig., discriminating sense.

 

© Webster 1913