je ne sais quoi

To have a certain je ne sais quoi, is to be effortlessly cool or chic without trying. It is a quality of elegance of movement and purpose, most effective and yet without apparent or visible effort, applied to any line of thought or activity. The quality makes itself visible through fashion, in the workings of one's profession, in the give-and-take of social relation, or through personal mannerisms. This quality implies lack of studied perfection - and in fact, pretense is by definition its opposite. The term 'je ne sais quoi' often refers to unstudied elegance of habit or dress, or the way in which clothing or hair naturally falls. An example from film is Johnny Depp's portrayal of Jack Sparrow - his dress, his movements, his manner of speech, combining imperfection and elegance - a certain je ne sais quoi unique to his character.a