diff --git a/Cargo.lock b/Cargo.lock
index 5f2609a5b..43d5f119c 100644
--- a/Cargo.lock
+++ b/Cargo.lock
@@ -3081,6 +3081,7 @@ dependencies = [
  "lightcraft-engine",
  "lightcraft-raster",
  "lightcraft-sysmem",
+ "lightcraft-testkit",
  "lightcraft-ui-egui",
  "log",
  "muda",
@@ -3144,6 +3145,7 @@ dependencies = [
  "lightcraft-geom",
  "lightcraft-heif",
  "lightcraft-raster",
+ "lightcraft-testkit",
  "moxcms 0.9.1",
  "png",
  "proptest",
@@ -3239,6 +3241,7 @@ dependencies = [
  "lightcraft-raw",
  "lightcraft-scenes",
  "lightcraft-segment",
+ "lightcraft-testkit",
  "lightcraft-tiff",
  "log",
  "miniz_oxide 0.8.9",
@@ -3254,6 +3257,7 @@ dependencies = [
 name = "lightcraft-faces"
 version = "0.6.0"
 dependencies = [
+ "lightcraft-testkit",
  "matrixmultiply",
  "ndarray",
  "proptest",
@@ -3304,6 +3308,7 @@ dependencies = [
  "lightcraft-raster",
  "lightcraft-raw",
  "lightcraft-scenes",
+ "lightcraft-testkit",
  "log",
  "pollster 1.0.1",
  "wgpu",
@@ -3424,6 +3429,7 @@ dependencies = [
  "lightcraft-geom",
  "lightcraft-meta",
  "lightcraft-raster",
+ "lightcraft-testkit",
  "lightcraft-tiff",
  "miniz_oxide 0.8.9",
  "proptest",
@@ -3454,6 +3460,7 @@ dependencies = [
  "candle-core",
  "candle-nn",
  "lightcraft-fetch",
+ "lightcraft-testkit",
  "log",
  "serde",
  "serde_json",
@@ -3464,6 +3471,10 @@ dependencies = [
 name = "lightcraft-sysmem"
 version = "0.6.0"
 
+[[package]]
+name = "lightcraft-testkit"
+version = "0.6.0"
+
 [[package]]
 name = "lightcraft-tiff"
 version = "0.6.0"
@@ -3493,6 +3504,7 @@ dependencies = [
  "lightcraft-pipeline",
  "lightcraft-preview",
  "lightcraft-raster",
+ "lightcraft-testkit",
  "log",
  "serde",
  "serde_json",
diff --git a/Cargo.toml b/Cargo.toml
index 7163c757c..feaee1d54 100644
--- a/Cargo.toml
+++ b/Cargo.toml
@@ -39,6 +39,7 @@ lightcraft-fetch = { path = "crates/fetch" }
 lightcraft-heif = { path = "crates/heif" }
 lightcraft-segment = { path = "crates/segment" }
 lightcraft-geocode = { path = "crates/geocode" }
+lightcraft-testkit = { path = "crates/testkit" }
 
 # foundation
 thiserror = "2"
diff --git a/apps/lightcraft/Cargo.toml b/apps/lightcraft/Cargo.toml
index bbe495c7d..26122c3e6 100644
--- a/apps/lightcraft/Cargo.toml
+++ b/apps/lightcraft/Cargo.toml
@@ -48,3 +48,7 @@ muda = { workspace = true }
 objc2 = { workspace = true }
 objc2-app-kit = { workspace = true }
 objc2-foundation = { workspace = true }
+
+[dev-dependencies]
+# tests record why they skip (`cargo xtask ci` lists the skips)
+lightcraft-testkit = { workspace = true }
diff --git a/apps/lightcraft/src/window_gpu.rs b/apps/lightcraft/src/window_gpu.rs
index 66e5a78d7..1f84ec477 100644
--- a/apps/lightcraft/src/window_gpu.rs
+++ b/apps/lightcraft/src/window_gpu.rs
@@ -278,11 +278,11 @@ mod tests {
             ..wgpu::InstanceDescriptor::new_without_display_handle()
         });
         let Ok(adapter) = pollster::block_on(instance.request_adapter(&wgpu::RequestAdapterOptions::default())) else {
-            eprintln!("no GPU adapter: skipped");
+            lightcraft_testkit::skip!(Gpu, "no GPU adapter");
             return;
         };
         let Ok((device, _queue)) = pollster::block_on(adapter.request_device(&wgpu::DeviceDescriptor::default())) else {
-            eprintln!("no GPU device: skipped");
+            lightcraft_testkit::skip!(Gpu, "no GPU device");
             return;
         };
         install_error_handler(&device);
diff --git a/crates/codecs/Cargo.toml b/crates/codecs/Cargo.toml
index 166fbf4dc..1ae016bc8 100644
--- a/crates/codecs/Cargo.toml
+++ b/crates/codecs/Cargo.toml
@@ -48,6 +48,8 @@ heif = ["dep:lightcraft-heif"]
 avif = ["dep:ravif", "dep:rav1e", "dep:avif-serialize"]
 
 [dev-dependencies]
+# tests record why they skip (`cargo xtask ci` lists the skips)
+lightcraft-testkit = { workspace = true }
 # JPEG XL tests read encoded samples without our colour conversion
 jxl-oxide = { workspace = true }
 proptest = { workspace = true }
diff --git a/crates/codecs/tests/corpus.rs b/crates/codecs/tests/corpus.rs
index d3b2ceba3..9a86bc5e2 100644
--- a/crates/codecs/tests/corpus.rs
+++ b/crates/codecs/tests/corpus.rs
@@ -31,7 +31,7 @@ fn files(dir: &Path) -> Vec<PathBuf> {
 fn corpus_images_decode() {
     let dir = corpus_root().join("images");
     if !dir.is_dir() {
-        eprintln!("skip: {} absent", dir.display());
+        lightcraft_testkit::skip!(Corpus, "{} absent", dir.display());
         return;
     }
     let (mut ok, mut unsupported) = (0, 0);
@@ -57,7 +57,7 @@ fn corpus_images_decode() {
 fn corpus_pngsuite() {
     let dir = corpus_root().join("pngsuite");
     if !dir.is_dir() {
-        eprintln!("skip: {} absent", dir.display());
+        lightcraft_testkit::skip!(Corpus, "{} absent", dir.display());
         return;
     }
     let mut n = 0;
@@ -83,7 +83,7 @@ fn corpus_pngsuite() {
 fn corpus_raw_is_routed() {
     let dir = corpus_root().join("raw");
     if !dir.is_dir() {
-        eprintln!("skip: {} absent", dir.display());
+        lightcraft_testkit::skip!(Corpus, "{} absent", dir.display());
         return;
     }
     for p in files(&dir) {
@@ -103,7 +103,7 @@ fn system_icc_profiles() {
     use lightcraft_codecs::icc::{IccColorModel, IccKind, parse};
     let dir = Path::new("/System/Library/ColorSync/Profiles");
     if !dir.is_dir() {
-        eprintln!("skip: no system ICC profiles");
+        lightcraft_testkit::skip!(System, "no system ICC profiles");
         return;
     }
     let expect = [
diff --git a/crates/engine/Cargo.toml b/crates/engine/Cargo.toml
index 2229c42a9..203135867 100644
--- a/crates/engine/Cargo.toml
+++ b/crates/engine/Cargo.toml
@@ -51,6 +51,8 @@ denoise = ["dep:lightcraft-denoise", "lightcraft-denoise/runtime", "lightcraft-g
 rawnind-model = ["denoise", "lightcraft-denoise/rawnind-model", "lightcraft-denoise-core/rawnind-model"]
 
 [dev-dependencies]
+# tests record why they skip (`cargo xtask ci` lists the skips)
+lightcraft-testkit = { workspace = true }
 # HDR JPEG XL tests read the file's colour encoding
 jxl-oxide = { workspace = true }
 # Lossless synthetic HEIC files (the import test; decoded when the codecs' `heif` feature is on).
diff --git a/crates/engine/src/camera_preview.rs b/crates/engine/src/camera_preview.rs
index 858f3b4cf..758714a75 100644
--- a/crates/engine/src/camera_preview.rs
+++ b/crates/engine/src/camera_preview.rs
@@ -1828,7 +1828,7 @@ mod tests {
             .join("raw");
         for name in ["arw-sony-a7m4-14bit.arw", "cr2-canon-5d3.cr2", "nef-nikon-d5100-lossless.nef", "cr2-canon-7d.cr2", "dng-canon-5d3-16bit.dng"] {
             let Ok(bytes) = std::fs::read(dir.join(name)) else {
-                eprintln!("skip: {name} absent");
+                lightcraft_testkit::skip!(Corpus, "{name} absent");
                 continue;
             };
             let mut raw = lightcraft_raw::decode(&bytes).unwrap();
@@ -1929,13 +1929,13 @@ mod tests {
             .unwrap_or_else(|| std::path::Path::new(env!("CARGO_MANIFEST_DIR")).join("../../corpus"))
             .join("raw/cr3-canon-r100-raw.cr3");
         let Ok(bytes) = std::fs::read(&path) else {
-            eprintln!("skip: {} absent", path.display());
+            lightcraft_testkit::skip!(Corpus, "{} absent", path.display());
             return;
         };
         let raw = match lightcraft_raw::decode(&bytes) {
             Ok(raw) => raw,
             Err(lightcraft_raw::RawError::Unsupported(why)) => {
-                eprintln!("skip CR3 sensor decoder: {why}");
+                lightcraft_testkit::skip!(Feature, "CR3 sensor decoder: {why}");
                 return;
             }
             Err(error) => panic!("CR3 corpus failed to decode: {error}"),
@@ -1964,7 +1964,7 @@ mod tests {
         let bytes = match std::fs::read(&path) {
             Ok(bytes) => bytes,
             Err(e) if e.kind() == std::io::ErrorKind::NotFound => {
-                eprintln!("skip: {} absent", path.display());
+                lightcraft_testkit::skip!(Corpus, "{} absent", path.display());
                 return;
             }
             Err(e) => panic!("{}: {e}", path.display()),
@@ -1995,7 +1995,7 @@ mod tests {
             .unwrap_or_else(|| std::path::Path::new(env!("CARGO_MANIFEST_DIR")).join("../../corpus"))
             .join("raw/nef-nikon-d7500-lossless14.nef");
         let Ok(bytes) = std::fs::read(&path) else {
-            eprintln!("skip: {} absent", path.display());
+            lightcraft_testkit::skip!(Corpus, "{} absent", path.display());
             return;
         };
         let (_, info) = crate::files::load_bytes(&bytes, 400).unwrap();
@@ -2015,7 +2015,7 @@ mod tests {
             let bytes = match std::fs::read(dir.join(name)) {
                 Ok(bytes) => bytes,
                 Err(e) if e.kind() == std::io::ErrorKind::NotFound => {
-                    eprintln!("skip: {name} absent");
+                    lightcraft_testkit::skip!(Corpus, "{name} absent");
                     continue;
                 }
                 Err(e) => panic!("{name}: {e}"),
@@ -2036,7 +2036,7 @@ mod tests {
             .unwrap_or_else(|| std::path::Path::new(env!("CARGO_MANIFEST_DIR")).join("../../corpus"))
             .join("raw/rw2-panasonic-fz1000m2-4x3.rw2");
         let Ok(bytes) = std::fs::read(&path) else {
-            eprintln!("skip: {} absent", path.display());
+            lightcraft_testkit::skip!(Corpus, "{} absent", path.display());
             return;
         };
         let (img, info) = crate::files::load_bytes(&bytes, 400).unwrap();
@@ -2055,7 +2055,7 @@ mod tests {
             .unwrap_or_else(|| std::path::Path::new(env!("CARGO_MANIFEST_DIR")).join("../../corpus"))
             .join("raw/arw-sony-a7rm2-12bit-uncompressed.arw");
         let Ok(bytes) = std::fs::read(&path) else {
-            eprintln!("skip: {} absent", path.display());
+            lightcraft_testkit::skip!(Corpus, "{} absent", path.display());
             return;
         };
         let (_, info) = crate::files::load_bytes(&bytes, 400).unwrap();
@@ -2213,7 +2213,7 @@ mod tests {
             let bytes = match std::fs::read(&path) {
                 Ok(bytes) => bytes,
                 Err(e) if e.kind() == std::io::ErrorKind::NotFound => {
-                    eprintln!("skip: {} absent", path.display());
+                    lightcraft_testkit::skip!(Corpus, "{} absent", path.display());
                     continue;
                 }
                 Err(e) => panic!("{}: {e}", path.display()),
diff --git a/crates/engine/src/cmd/convert.rs b/crates/engine/src/cmd/convert.rs
index 4d7f13aeb..1eaec749d 100644
--- a/crates/engine/src/cmd/convert.rs
+++ b/crates/engine/src/cmd/convert.rs
@@ -494,7 +494,7 @@ mod tests {
             .unwrap_or_else(|| Path::new(env!("CARGO_MANIFEST_DIR")).join("../../corpus"));
         let f = root.join("raw/rw2-panasonic-gx80.rw2");
         if !f.exists() {
-            eprintln!("skip: {} absent", f.display());
+            lightcraft_testkit::skip!(Corpus, "{} absent", f.display());
             return;
         }
         let mut s = Session::new().with_fs();
diff --git a/crates/engine/src/export.rs b/crates/engine/src/export.rs
index f356d6e4d..4b91e5b78 100644
--- a/crates/engine/src/export.rs
+++ b/crates/engine/src/export.rs
@@ -2414,7 +2414,7 @@ mod tests {
     fn biz_ud_vertical_watermarks_place_punctuation_at_the_top_right() {
         use ab_glyph::Font;
         let Some(entry) = crate::fonts::CRAFT_FONTS.iter().find(|f| f.family == "BIZ UDMincho") else {
-            eprintln!("skipped: built without BIZ UDMincho from craft-fonts");
+            lightcraft_testkit::skip!(Fonts, "built without BIZ UDMincho from craft-fonts");
             return;
         };
         let font = ab_glyph::FontRef::try_from_slice(entry.bytes).unwrap();
@@ -2486,7 +2486,7 @@ mod tests {
                 compare(composed, decomposed, crate::fonts::CRAFT_FONTS);
             }
         } else {
-            eprintln!("skipped Japanese comparisons: built without BIZ UDMincho from craft-fonts");
+            lightcraft_testkit::skip!(Fonts, "Japanese comparisons: built without BIZ UDMincho from craft-fonts");
         }
     }
 
@@ -2510,7 +2510,7 @@ mod tests {
         use ab_glyph::Font;
         let fonts = watermark_fonts(crate::fonts::CRAFT_FONTS);
         if fonts.len() < 2 {
-            eprintln!("skipped: built without CRAFT_FONTS_DIR, so there is no Japanese watermark face");
+            lightcraft_testkit::skip!(Fonts, "built without CRAFT_FONTS_DIR, so there is no Japanese watermark face");
             return;
         }
         for c in "日本語の文字".chars() {
@@ -3090,7 +3090,7 @@ mod tests {
     #[test]
     fn a_batch_reports_a_gpu_fallback_on_the_file_it_hit() {
         if !lightcraft_gpu::available() {
-            eprintln!("skipped: no GPU adapter ({:?})", lightcraft_gpu::unavailable_reason());
+            lightcraft_testkit::skip!(Gpu, "no GPU adapter ({})", lightcraft_gpu::unavailable_reason().unwrap_or_default());
             return;
         }
         let mut s = crate::Session::with_demo();
diff --git a/crates/engine/src/files.rs b/crates/engine/src/files.rs
index c48aaff77..2ab7c21f0 100644
--- a/crates/engine/src/files.rs
+++ b/crates/engine/src/files.rs
@@ -1133,7 +1133,7 @@ mod tests {
             .unwrap_or_else(|| std::path::Path::new(env!("CARGO_MANIFEST_DIR")).join("../../corpus"))
             .join("raw");
         let Ok(gh1) = std::fs::read(dir.join("rw2-panasonic-gh1.rw2")) else {
-            eprintln!("skip: {} absent", dir.display());
+            lightcraft_testkit::skip!(Corpus, "{} absent", dir.display());
             return;
         };
         assert_eq!(probe_bytes("gh1.rw2", &gh1).unwrap().embedded_lens, None, "correction off: nothing to apply");
@@ -1484,7 +1484,7 @@ mod tests {
             .unwrap_or_else(|| std::path::Path::new(env!("CARGO_MANIFEST_DIR")).join("../../corpus"))
             .join("raw");
         let Ok(bytes) = std::fs::read(dir.join("arw-sony-a7rm4-14bit-compressed.arw")) else {
-            eprintln!("skip: {} absent", dir.display());
+            lightcraft_testkit::skip!(Corpus, "{} absent", dir.display());
             return;
         };
         let (img, _) = load_bytes(&bytes, 1600).unwrap();
diff --git a/crates/engine/src/tests_face_models.rs b/crates/engine/src/tests_face_models.rs
index f1c27c849..49532c471 100644
--- a/crates/engine/src/tests_face_models.rs
+++ b/crates/engine/src/tests_face_models.rs
@@ -179,7 +179,7 @@ fn hostile_ids_unsupported_models_and_odd_folders_are_handled() {
 /// Settings > Faces downloads; nothing is committed). Without it those tests say so and pass.
 fn demo_with_yunet() -> Option<Session> {
     let Some(file) = std::env::var_os("LC_YUNET_MODEL") else {
-        eprintln!("LC_YUNET_MODEL is not set: skipping");
+        lightcraft_testkit::skip!(Model, "LC_YUNET_MODEL is not set");
         return None;
     };
     let dir = temp("yunet");
diff --git a/crates/engine/src/tests_face_recognize.rs b/crates/engine/src/tests_face_recognize.rs
index aabcb03c3..5aab8f9a4 100644
--- a/crates/engine/src/tests_face_recognize.rs
+++ b/crates/engine/src/tests_face_recognize.rs
@@ -34,7 +34,7 @@ pub(crate) fn setup(d: &std::path::Path, dim: u64) -> (Session, String) {
 /// committed) and says whether it did: the parts of a test that need to find faces run only then.
 pub(crate) fn install_yunet(s: &mut Session) -> bool {
     let Some(file) = std::env::var_os("LC_YUNET_MODEL") else {
-        eprintln!("LC_YUNET_MODEL is not set: skipping the face-finding part");
+        lightcraft_testkit::skip!(Model, "LC_YUNET_MODEL is not set, so the face-finding part is not checked");
         return false;
     };
     let r = s.execute("faces.models.install", &json!({"path": file.to_string_lossy(), "acknowledged": true}));
diff --git a/crates/engine/src/tests_xmp.rs b/crates/engine/src/tests_xmp.rs
index c768078ce..9c2b40849 100644
--- a/crates/engine/src/tests_xmp.rs
+++ b/crates/engine/src/tests_xmp.rs
@@ -581,7 +581,7 @@ fn convert_raw_to_dng() {
     let r = s.execute("photo.convertToDng", &json!({})).unwrap();
     assert_eq!((r["converted"].as_array().unwrap().len(), r["skipped"].as_array().unwrap().len()), (0, 1));
     if !corpus.exists() {
-        eprintln!("skip: {} absent", corpus.display());
+        lightcraft_testkit::skip!(Corpus, "{} absent", corpus.display());
         return;
     }
     let nef = dir.join("shot.nef");
@@ -843,7 +843,7 @@ fn dng_export_compression_choices() {
         .unwrap_or_else(|| Path::new(env!("CARGO_MANIFEST_DIR")).join("../../corpus"))
         .join("raw/nef-nikon-d5100-uncompressed.nef");
     if !corpus.exists() {
-        eprintln!("skip: {} absent", corpus.display());
+        lightcraft_testkit::skip!(Corpus, "{} absent", corpus.display());
         return;
     }
     let mut s = Session::new().with_fs();
diff --git a/crates/engine/tests/preview_read.rs b/crates/engine/tests/preview_read.rs
index 11ffec44e..34aae9591 100644
--- a/crates/engine/tests/preview_read.rs
+++ b/crates/engine/tests/preview_read.rs
@@ -13,7 +13,7 @@ use std::time::Instant;
 #[ignore = "needs LC_PREVIEW_RAW pointing at a real raw file"]
 fn a_preview_reads_only_the_header_and_the_preview() {
     let Ok(path) = std::env::var("LC_PREVIEW_RAW") else {
-        eprintln!("skipped: set LC_PREVIEW_RAW=<path to a raw file>");
+        lightcraft_testkit::skip!(Input, "set LC_PREVIEW_RAW=<path to a raw file>");
         return;
     };
     let file_len = std::fs::metadata(&path).expect("the file exists").len();
diff --git a/crates/faces/Cargo.toml b/crates/faces/Cargo.toml
index 112967cee..78ea0b798 100644
--- a/crates/faces/Cargo.toml
+++ b/crates/faces/Cargo.toml
@@ -22,4 +22,6 @@ sha2 = { workspace = true }
 thiserror = { workspace = true }
 
 [dev-dependencies]
+# tests record why they skip (`cargo xtask ci` lists the skips)
+lightcraft-testkit = { workspace = true }
 proptest = { workspace = true }
diff --git a/crates/faces/src/yunet.rs b/crates/faces/src/yunet.rs
index b77f318bf..56f5d6474 100644
--- a/crates/faces/src/yunet.rs
+++ b/crates/faces/src/yunet.rs
@@ -263,7 +263,7 @@ mod tests {
 
     fn detector() -> Option<Detector> {
         let Some(bytes) = model() else {
-            eprintln!("LC_YUNET_MODEL is not set: skipping");
+            lightcraft_testkit::skip!(Model, "LC_YUNET_MODEL is not set");
             return None;
         };
         Some(Detector::new(&bytes).unwrap())
diff --git a/crates/gpu/Cargo.toml b/crates/gpu/Cargo.toml
index dc348ee88..5547c548d 100644
--- a/crates/gpu/Cargo.toml
+++ b/crates/gpu/Cargo.toml
@@ -29,5 +29,7 @@ default = []
 denoise = ["dep:lightcraft-denoise", "lightcraft-denoise/runtime"]
 
 [dev-dependencies]
+# tests record why they skip (`cargo xtask ci` lists the skips)
+lightcraft-testkit = { workspace = true }
 lightcraft-scenes = { workspace = true }
 lightcraft-raw = { workspace = true }
diff --git a/crates/gpu/src/nn.rs b/crates/gpu/src/nn.rs
index 4f078ff93..5872bfaa9 100644
--- a/crates/gpu/src/nn.rs
+++ b/crates/gpu/src/nn.rs
@@ -907,7 +907,7 @@ mod tests {
         match runner(net, tile) {
             Ok(r) => Some(r),
             Err(e) => {
-                eprintln!("skipped: no GPU runner here ({e})");
+                lightcraft_testkit::skip!(Gpu, "no GPU runner here ({e})");
                 None
             }
         }
diff --git a/crates/gpu/tests/equivalence.rs b/crates/gpu/tests/equivalence.rs
index 96771a971..16a9263c1 100644
--- a/crates/gpu/tests/equivalence.rs
+++ b/crates/gpu/tests/equivalence.rs
@@ -19,7 +19,7 @@ const MAX_LSB: u8 = 3;
 fn gpu() -> bool {
     let ok = lightcraft_gpu::available();
     if !ok {
-        eprintln!("skipped: no GPU adapter");
+        lightcraft_testkit::skip!(Gpu, "no GPU adapter");
     }
     ok
 }
diff --git a/crates/gpu/tests/fallback.rs b/crates/gpu/tests/fallback.rs
index fe2ecad5e..05347b446 100644
--- a/crates/gpu/tests/fallback.rs
+++ b/crates/gpu/tests/fallback.rs
@@ -38,7 +38,7 @@ fn masked(s: &mut DevelopSettings, k: usize) {
 #[test]
 fn failed_gpu_renders_fall_back_with_a_reason() {
     if !lightcraft_gpu::available() {
-        eprintln!("skipped: no GPU adapter ({:?})", lightcraft_gpu::unavailable_reason());
+        lightcraft_testkit::skip!(Gpu, "no GPU adapter ({})", lightcraft_gpu::unavailable_reason().unwrap_or_default());
         return;
     }
     assert_eq!(lightcraft_gpu::unavailable_reason(), None);
diff --git a/crates/gpu/tests/memory.rs b/crates/gpu/tests/memory.rs
index 2ef958cb1..25784f001 100644
--- a/crates/gpu/tests/memory.rs
+++ b/crates/gpu/tests/memory.rs
@@ -9,7 +9,7 @@ use lightcraft_pipeline::{RenderRequest, SourceInfo, StageCache};
 #[test]
 fn stages_are_counted_and_the_pool_is_bounded_and_trimmed() {
     if !lightcraft_gpu::available() {
-        eprintln!("skipped: no GPU adapter");
+        lightcraft_testkit::skip!(Gpu, "no GPU adapter");
         return;
     }
     let limit = 64u64 << 20;
diff --git a/crates/gpu/tests/shutdown.rs b/crates/gpu/tests/shutdown.rs
index b827a0711..a8d5cbd23 100644
--- a/crates/gpu/tests/shutdown.rs
+++ b/crates/gpu/tests/shutdown.rs
@@ -21,7 +21,8 @@ fn nothing_renders_on_the_gpu_once_the_process_is_ending() {
     let req = RenderRequest::fit(w, h);
     let has_gpu = lightcraft_gpu::available();
     if !has_gpu {
-        eprintln!("no GPU adapter ({:?}): only the CPU side is checked", lightcraft_gpu::unavailable_reason());
+        let why = lightcraft_gpu::unavailable_reason().unwrap_or_default();
+        lightcraft_testkit::skip!(Gpu, "no GPU adapter ({why}), so only the CPU side is checked");
     }
     assert!(!lightcraft_gpu::shutting_down());
     assert!(lightcraft_gpu::wait_idle(Duration::ZERO), "nothing is in flight yet");
diff --git a/crates/raw/Cargo.toml b/crates/raw/Cargo.toml
index 2ca9ef246..84f9fa91a 100644
--- a/crates/raw/Cargo.toml
+++ b/crates/raw/Cargo.toml
@@ -28,6 +28,8 @@ default = ["jxl"]
 jxl = ["dep:jxl-oxide"]
 
 [dev-dependencies]
+# tests record why they skip (`cargo xtask ci` lists the skips)
+lightcraft-testkit = { workspace = true }
 jpeg-encoder = { workspace = true }
 proptest = { workspace = true }
 zune-jpegxl = { workspace = true }
diff --git a/crates/raw/tests/corpus.rs b/crates/raw/tests/corpus.rs
index 5ca4777b7..cf5bc5290 100644
--- a/crates/raw/tests/corpus.rs
+++ b/crates/raw/tests/corpus.rs
@@ -25,7 +25,7 @@ const KNOWN_UNSUPPORTED: &[&str] = &[
 fn corpus_raw_decodes() {
     let dir = corpus_root().join("raw");
     let Ok(rd) = std::fs::read_dir(&dir) else {
-        eprintln!("skip: {} absent", dir.display());
+        lightcraft_testkit::skip!(Corpus, "{} absent", dir.display());
         return;
     };
     let mut paths: Vec<PathBuf> = rd.flatten().map(|e| e.path()).filter(|p| p.is_file()).collect();
@@ -159,7 +159,7 @@ fn corpus_cr2_cfa_patterns() {
     let mut seen = 0;
     for (name, want) in cases {
         let Ok(bytes) = std::fs::read(dir.join(name)) else {
-            eprintln!("skip: {name} absent");
+            lightcraft_testkit::skip!(Corpus, "{name} absent");
             continue;
         };
         let img = decode(&bytes).unwrap_or_else(|e| panic!("{name}: {e}"));
@@ -189,7 +189,7 @@ fn corpus_cr2_as_shot_white_balance() {
         "cr2-canon-80d.cr2",
     ] {
         let Ok(bytes) = std::fs::read(dir.join(name)) else {
-            eprintln!("skip: {name} absent");
+            lightcraft_testkit::skip!(Corpus, "{name} absent");
             continue;
         };
         let wb = decode(&bytes).unwrap_or_else(|e| panic!("{name}: {e}")).wb_multipliers.unwrap_or_else(|| panic!("{name}: no as-shot WB"));
@@ -206,7 +206,7 @@ fn corpus_nef_compressed_matches_uncompressed() {
     let dir = corpus_root().join("raw");
     let (Ok(a), Ok(b)) = (std::fs::read(dir.join("nef-nikon-d5100-lossless.nef")), std::fs::read(dir.join("nef-nikon-d5100-uncompressed.nef")))
     else {
-        eprintln!("skip: D5100 NEF pair absent");
+        lightcraft_testkit::skip!(Corpus, "D5100 NEF pair absent");
         return;
     };
     let (a, b) = (decode(&a).unwrap(), decode(&b).unwrap());
@@ -231,7 +231,7 @@ fn corpus_nef_compressed_matches_uncompressed() {
 fn corpus_nef_high_efficiency_is_named() {
     let dir = corpus_root().join("raw");
     let (Ok(he), Ok(lossless)) = (std::fs::read(dir.join("nef-nikon-zf-he.nef")), std::fs::read(dir.join("nef-nikon-zf-lossless.nef"))) else {
-        eprintln!("skip: Z f samples absent");
+        lightcraft_testkit::skip!(Corpus, "Z f samples absent");
         return;
     };
     for result in [decode(&he).map(|_| ()), probe_info(&he).map(|_| ())] {
@@ -248,7 +248,7 @@ fn corpus_nef_12_bit_black_level_matches_14_bit() {
     let dir = corpus_root().join("raw");
     let (Ok(a), Ok(b)) = (std::fs::read(dir.join("nef-nikon-d7500-lossless12.nef")), std::fs::read(dir.join("nef-nikon-d7500-lossless14.nef")))
     else {
-        eprintln!("skip: D7500 NEF pair absent");
+        lightcraft_testkit::skip!(Corpus, "D7500 NEF pair absent");
         return;
     };
     let (a, b) = (decode(&a).unwrap(), decode(&b).unwrap());
@@ -278,7 +278,7 @@ fn corpus_nef_12_bit_black_level_matches_14_bit() {
 fn corpus_dngs_carry_profile_looks() {
     let dir = corpus_root().join("raw");
     let Ok(rd) = std::fs::read_dir(&dir) else {
-        eprintln!("skip: {} absent", dir.display());
+        lightcraft_testkit::skip!(Corpus, "{} absent", dir.display());
         return;
     };
     let mut seen = 0;
@@ -327,7 +327,7 @@ fn corpus_dngs_carry_profile_looks() {
 fn corpus_proraw_sky_matte() {
     let path = corpus_root().join("raw/dng-apple-iphone12pro-proraw.dng");
     let Ok(bytes) = std::fs::read(&path) else {
-        eprintln!("skip: {} absent", path.display());
+        lightcraft_testkit::skip!(Corpus, "{} absent", path.display());
         return;
     };
     let t0 = Instant::now();
@@ -365,7 +365,7 @@ fn corpus_sony_pre2017_colour_metadata() {
     let mut seen = 0;
     for (name, black, [r, b], (cw, ch)) in cases {
         let Ok(bytes) = std::fs::read(dir.join(name)) else {
-            eprintln!("skip: {name} absent");
+            lightcraft_testkit::skip!(Corpus, "{name} absent");
             continue;
         };
         let img = decode(&bytes).unwrap_or_else(|e| panic!("{name}: {e}"));
@@ -397,7 +397,7 @@ fn corpus_sony_a7cr_codings() {
         let bytes = match std::fs::read(dir.join(name)) {
             Ok(bytes) => bytes,
             Err(e) if e.kind() == std::io::ErrorKind::NotFound => {
-                eprintln!("skip: {name} absent");
+                lightcraft_testkit::skip!(Corpus, "{name} absent");
                 continue;
             }
             Err(e) => panic!("{name}: {e}"),
@@ -464,7 +464,7 @@ fn corpus_sony_a7cm2_codings() {
         let bytes = match std::fs::read(dir.join(name)) {
             Ok(bytes) => bytes,
             Err(e) if e.kind() == std::io::ErrorKind::NotFound => {
-                eprintln!("skip: {name} absent");
+                lightcraft_testkit::skip!(Corpus, "{name} absent");
                 continue;
             }
             Err(e) => panic!("{name}: {e}"),
@@ -509,7 +509,7 @@ fn corpus_sony_black_levels_sit_at_the_data_floor() {
         let bytes = match std::fs::read(dir.join(name)) {
             Ok(bytes) => bytes,
             Err(e) if e.kind() == std::io::ErrorKind::NotFound => {
-                eprintln!("skip: {name} absent");
+                lightcraft_testkit::skip!(Corpus, "{name} absent");
                 continue;
             }
             Err(e) => panic!("{name}: {e}"),
@@ -567,7 +567,7 @@ fn corpus_sony_sr2_white_balance() {
     let mut seen = 0;
     for (name, [r, b]) in cases {
         let Ok(bytes) = std::fs::read(dir.join(name)) else {
-            eprintln!("skip: {name} absent");
+            lightcraft_testkit::skip!(Corpus, "{name} absent");
             continue;
         };
         let img = decode(&bytes).unwrap_or_else(|e| panic!("{name}: {e}"));
@@ -585,7 +585,7 @@ fn corpus_sony_sr2_white_balance() {
 fn corpus_sony_a900_packed12() {
     let name = "arw-sony-a900-packed12.arw";
     let Ok(bytes) = std::fs::read(corpus_root().join("raw").join(name)) else {
-        eprintln!("skip: {name} absent");
+        lightcraft_testkit::skip!(Corpus, "{name} absent");
         return;
     };
     let img = decode(&bytes).unwrap_or_else(|e| panic!("{name}: {e}"));
@@ -607,7 +607,7 @@ fn corpus_sony_16x9_crops() {
         let bytes = match std::fs::read(dir.join(name)) {
             Ok(bytes) => bytes,
             Err(e) if e.kind() == std::io::ErrorKind::NotFound => {
-                eprintln!("skip: {name} absent");
+                lightcraft_testkit::skip!(Corpus, "{name} absent");
                 continue;
             }
             Err(e) => panic!("{name}: {e}"),
@@ -727,7 +727,7 @@ fn corpus_panasonic_encodings() {
     let mut seen = 0;
     for (name, bits, black, (cw, ch), cfa) in cases {
         let Ok(bytes) = std::fs::read(dir.join(name)) else {
-            eprintln!("skip: {name} absent");
+            lightcraft_testkit::skip!(Corpus, "{name} absent");
             continue;
         };
         let img = decode(&bytes).unwrap_or_else(|e| panic!("{name}: {e}"));
@@ -777,7 +777,7 @@ fn corpus_orf_cfa_patterns() {
     let mut seen = 0;
     for (name, cfa) in cases {
         let Ok(bytes) = std::fs::read(dir.join(name)) else {
-            eprintln!("skip: {name} absent");
+            lightcraft_testkit::skip!(Corpus, "{name} absent");
             continue;
         };
         let img = decode(&bytes).unwrap_or_else(|e| panic!("{name}: {e}"));
@@ -812,7 +812,7 @@ fn corpus_samsung_srw() {
     let mut seen = 0;
     for (name, bits, active, crop, cfa, whole) in cases {
         let Ok(bytes) = std::fs::read(dir.join(name)) else {
-            eprintln!("skip: {name} absent");
+            lightcraft_testkit::skip!(Corpus, "{name} absent");
             continue;
         };
         let img = decode(&bytes).unwrap_or_else(|e| panic!("{name}: {e}"));
@@ -941,7 +941,7 @@ fn corpus_sony_arw6_samples() {
 fn corpus_raws_keep_their_container_and_are_not_thumbnail_shells() {
     let dir = corpus_root().join("raw");
     let Ok(rd) = std::fs::read_dir(&dir) else {
-        eprintln!("skip: {} absent", dir.display());
+        lightcraft_testkit::skip!(Corpus, "{} absent", dir.display());
         return;
     };
     let mut checked = 0;
@@ -1004,7 +1004,7 @@ fn sony_embedded_distortion_is_limited_to_validated_models() {
     ] {
         let path = root.join(name);
         if !path.exists() {
-            eprintln!("skip: {} absent", path.display());
+            lightcraft_testkit::skip!(Corpus, "{} absent", path.display());
             continue;
         }
         let bytes = std::fs::read(&path).unwrap();
@@ -1026,7 +1026,7 @@ fn corpus_kodak_dcs520c() {
     let name = "2573_Kodak - DCS520C - 12bit (3_2).TIF";
     let candidates = [corpus_root().join("raw").join("kodak-dcs520c.tif"), Path::new("P:/raw-pixls/Kodak/DCS520C").join(name)];
     let Some(bytes) = candidates.iter().find_map(|p| std::fs::read(p).ok()) else {
-        eprintln!("skip: DCS520C sample absent");
+        lightcraft_testkit::skip!(Corpus, "DCS520C sample absent");
         return;
     };
     assert_eq!(probe(&bytes), Some(RawFormat::KodakDcs));
diff --git a/crates/raw/tests/cr3_corpus.rs b/crates/raw/tests/cr3_corpus.rs
index ebf669307..06f7150a8 100644
--- a/crates/raw/tests/cr3_corpus.rs
+++ b/crates/raw/tests/cr3_corpus.rs
@@ -22,7 +22,7 @@ fn check(name: &str, hash: u64, sensor: (usize, usize), developed: (usize, usize
 fn check_against(name: &str, hash: u64, sensor: (usize, usize), developed: Option<(usize, usize)>, reference: &str) {
     let path = corpus().join("raw").join(name);
     let Ok(bytes) = std::fs::read(&path) else {
-        eprintln!("skip: {} absent", path.display());
+        lightcraft_testkit::skip!(Corpus, "{} absent", path.display());
         return;
     };
     let raw = decode(&bytes).unwrap_or_else(|e| panic!("{name}: {e}"));
@@ -118,7 +118,7 @@ fn canon_m50_craw_crop_is_the_shot_aspect() {
     // which is (12, 12) inside the valid sensor area.
     let path = corpus().join("raw").join("cr3-canon-m50-craw.cr3");
     let Ok(bytes) = std::fs::read(&path) else {
-        eprintln!("skip: {} absent", path.display());
+        lightcraft_testkit::skip!(Corpus, "{} absent", path.display());
         return;
     };
     let raw = decode(&bytes).unwrap();
diff --git a/crates/raw/tests/sparse_corpus.rs b/crates/raw/tests/sparse_corpus.rs
index 3ab735299..4d9112bfb 100644
--- a/crates/raw/tests/sparse_corpus.rs
+++ b/crates/raw/tests/sparse_corpus.rs
@@ -58,7 +58,7 @@ fn partial_reads_describe_raws_as_whole_files_do() {
         .filter(|p| p.is_file() && !p.extension().is_some_and(|e| e == "part" || e == "txt" || e == "md"))
         .collect();
     if paths.is_empty() {
-        eprintln!("skip: {} absent", dir.display());
+        lightcraft_testkit::skip!(Corpus, "{} absent", dir.display());
         return;
     }
     paths.sort();
diff --git a/crates/segment/Cargo.toml b/crates/segment/Cargo.toml
index 11dff5c77..b4614a81d 100644
--- a/crates/segment/Cargo.toml
+++ b/crates/segment/Cargo.toml
@@ -23,3 +23,7 @@ lightcraft-fetch = { workspace = true }
 [target.'cfg(target_os = "macos")'.dependencies]
 candle-core = { workspace = true, features = ["metal"] }
 candle-nn = { workspace = true, features = ["metal"] }
+
+[dev-dependencies]
+# tests record why they skip (`cargo xtask ci` lists the skips)
+lightcraft-testkit = { workspace = true }
diff --git a/crates/segment/tests/reference.rs b/crates/segment/tests/reference.rs
index a73fcaa7c..315d36cd1 100644
--- a/crates/segment/tests/reference.rs
+++ b/crates/segment/tests/reference.rs
@@ -38,7 +38,7 @@ fn mask_disagreement(a: &[f32], b: &[f32]) -> f32 {
 #[test]
 fn matches_reference() {
     let Some((dir, r)) = setup() else {
-        eprintln!("skipped: set LIGHTCRAFT_SAM3_DIR and LIGHTCRAFT_SAM3_REF");
+        lightcraft_testkit::skip!(Model, "set LIGHTCRAFT_SAM3_DIR and LIGHTCRAFT_SAM3_REF");
         return;
     };
     let mut model = Sam3::load(&dir).unwrap();
diff --git a/crates/testkit/Cargo.toml b/crates/testkit/Cargo.toml
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..cefa1ef5c
--- /dev/null
+++ b/crates/testkit/Cargo.toml
@@ -0,0 +1,12 @@
+[package]
+name = "lightcraft-testkit"
+version.workspace = true
+edition.workspace = true
+license.workspace = true
+description = "LightCraft test tooling (dev-dependency only): a test that can't run here records why, so `cargo xtask ci` reports it"
+publish = false
+
+[lints]
+workspace = true
+
+[dependencies]
diff --git a/crates/testkit/src/lib.rs b/crates/testkit/src/lib.rs
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..7a2322245
--- /dev/null
+++ b/crates/testkit/src/lib.rs
@@ -0,0 +1,190 @@
+//! Test tooling shared by the workspace's tests. A dev-dependency only: `cargo xtask layers`
+//! refuses it as a normal dependency. Std only, so every crate can use it at no build cost.
+//!
+//! **Skips.** libtest has no "skipped" status and hides the output of passing tests, so a test that
+//! needs a GPU, a corpus file, the craft-fonts faces or a model, and returns early without them,
+//! passes silently: "all steps passed" could mean the GPU tests never ran. Such a test calls
+//! [`skip!`] before it returns:
+//!
+//! ```no_run
+//! # let gpu_available = false;
+//! if !gpu_available {
+//!     lightcraft_testkit::skip!(Gpu, "no GPU adapter");
+//!     return;
+//! }
+//! ```
+//!
+//! It prints the note to stderr as before and, when the [`SKIP_LOG_ENV`] variable names a file
+//! (`cargo xtask ci` sets it), appends one JSON line there:
+//! `{"need":"gpu","reason":"no GPU adapter","test":"camera_tone","binary":"equivalence","location":"crates/gpu/tests/equivalence.rs:22"}`.
+//! `cargo xtask ci` lists the skips by need and reason in its summary and in
+//! `target/ci/report.json`. A test that runs part of its checks (e.g. only the CPU half) records
+//! the part it could not run the same way.
+#![forbid(unsafe_code)]
+#![deny(clippy::unwrap_used, clippy::expect_used, clippy::panic, clippy::unimplemented, clippy::todo, clippy::unreachable)]
+
+use std::fmt::Write as _;
+use std::io::Write as _;
+use std::path::Path;
+
+/// The environment variable naming the file skips are appended to (JSON lines).
+pub const SKIP_LOG_ENV: &str = "LIGHTCRAFT_SKIP_LOG";
+
+/// What a skipped test needed and didn't find.
+#[derive(Clone, Copy, Debug, PartialEq, Eq)]
+pub enum Need {
+    /// A usable GPU adapter (`lightcraft_gpu::available()`).
+    Gpu,
+    /// A file from the gitignored `corpus/` (`cargo xtask corpus --download`) or a private corpus.
+    Corpus,
+    /// Faces from craft-fonts, embedded only in builds with `CRAFT_FONTS_DIR`.
+    Fonts,
+    /// A model file named by an environment variable (SAM 3, YuNet, …).
+    Model,
+    /// An input file named by an environment variable (opt-in tests).
+    Input,
+    /// Something the operating system provides (system ICC profiles, …).
+    System,
+    /// Support this build doesn't have yet (a decoder that refuses a file variant, an optional
+    /// cargo feature that is off).
+    Feature,
+}
+
+impl Need {
+    /// The name in the skip log and the CI summary.
+    pub fn as_str(self) -> &'static str {
+        match self {
+            Need::Gpu => "gpu",
+            Need::Corpus => "corpus",
+            Need::Fonts => "fonts",
+            Need::Model => "model",
+            Need::Input => "input",
+            Need::System => "system",
+            Need::Feature => "feature",
+        }
+    }
+}
+
+/// Record that this test (or part of it) can't run here: `skip!(Gpu, "no GPU adapter ({why})")`.
+/// The first argument names a [`Need`] variant; the rest is a `format!` message. Doesn't return
+/// from the test: follow it with `return` (or `continue`) as the test needs.
+#[macro_export]
+macro_rules! skip {
+    ($need:ident, $($arg:tt)+) => {
+        $crate::record($crate::Need::$need, &::std::format!($($arg)+), ::std::file!(), ::std::line!())
+    };
+}
+
+/// What [`skip!`] calls: print the note and append it to the skip log, if one is set. Never fails
+/// the test: a log that can't be written loses the entry, not the run.
+pub fn record(need: Need, reason: &str, file: &str, line: u32) {
+    eprintln!("skipped ({}): {reason}", need.as_str());
+    let log = std::env::var_os(SKIP_LOG_ENV).filter(|p| !p.is_empty());
+    if let Some(log) = log {
+        let thread = std::thread::current();
+        let binary = std::env::current_exe().ok().and_then(|p| p.file_stem().map(|s| binary_name(&s.to_string_lossy()).to_owned()));
+        let entry = entry(need, reason, thread.name().unwrap_or(""), binary.as_deref().unwrap_or(""), file, line);
+        append(Path::new(&log), &entry);
+    }
+}
+
+/// Append one line in a single write, so lines from parallel tests don't interleave.
+fn append(path: &Path, line: &str) {
+    let file = std::fs::OpenOptions::new().create(true).append(true).open(path);
+    if let Err(e) = file.and_then(|mut f| f.write_all(line.as_bytes())) {
+        eprintln!("{SKIP_LOG_ENV}: can't append to {}: {e}", path.display());
+    }
+}
+
+/// A test binary's name without the hash cargo appends (`equivalence-0123abcd` → `equivalence`).
+fn binary_name(stem: &str) -> &str {
+    match stem.rsplit_once('-') {
+        Some((name, hash)) if !name.is_empty() && hash.len() == 16 && hash.bytes().all(|b| b.is_ascii_hexdigit()) => name,
+        _ => stem,
+    }
+}
+
+/// One skip-log line (JSON, newline-terminated).
+fn entry(need: Need, reason: &str, test: &str, binary: &str, file: &str, line: u32) -> String {
+    let mut s = String::from("{");
+    for (i, (key, value)) in [("need", need.as_str()), ("reason", reason), ("test", test), ("binary", binary)].into_iter().enumerate() {
+        if i > 0 {
+            s.push(',');
+        }
+        let _ = write!(s, "\"{key}\":\"{}\"", escape(value));
+    }
+    let _ = writeln!(s, ",\"location\":\"{}:{line}\"}}", escape(&file.replace('\\', "/")));
+    s
+}
+
+/// A JSON string's contents.
+fn escape(s: &str) -> String {
+    let mut out = String::with_capacity(s.len());
+    for c in s.chars() {
+        match c {
+            '"' => out.push_str("\\\""),
+            '\\' => out.push_str("\\\\"),
+            '\n' => out.push_str("\\n"),
+            '\r' => out.push_str("\\r"),
+            '\t' => out.push_str("\\t"),
+            c if u32::from(c) < 0x20 => {
+                let _ = write!(out, "\\u{:04x}", u32::from(c));
+            }
+            c => out.push(c),
+        }
+    }
+    out
+}
+
+#[cfg(test)]
+mod tests {
+    use super::*;
+
+    #[test]
+    fn an_entry_is_one_json_line_with_its_text_escaped() {
+        let line = entry(Need::Corpus, "skip: C:\\corpus\\raw \"absent\"\n\u{1}", "corpus::decodes", "corpus", "crates\\raw\\tests\\corpus.rs", 28);
+        assert!(line.ends_with('\n'));
+        assert_eq!(line.matches('\n').count(), 1, "{line}");
+        assert_eq!(
+            line,
+            "{\"need\":\"corpus\",\"reason\":\"skip: C:\\\\corpus\\\\raw \\\"absent\\\"\\n\\u0001\",\"test\":\"corpus::decodes\",\
+             \"binary\":\"corpus\",\"location\":\"crates/raw/tests/corpus.rs:28\"}\n"
+        );
+    }
+
+    #[test]
+    fn binary_names_lose_cargos_hash_only() {
+        assert_eq!(binary_name("equivalence-0f3a9c2b1d4e5f60"), "equivalence");
+        assert_eq!(binary_name("lightcraft_engine-0f3a9c2b1d4e5f60"), "lightcraft_engine");
+        assert_eq!(binary_name("sparse_corpus"), "sparse_corpus");
+        assert_eq!(binary_name("cr3-corpus"), "cr3-corpus");
+        assert_eq!(binary_name("-0f3a9c2b1d4e5f60"), "-0f3a9c2b1d4e5f60");
+        assert_eq!(binary_name("tool-cafe"), "tool-cafe");
+    }
+
+    #[test]
+    fn appended_lines_accumulate() {
+        let dir = std::env::temp_dir().join(format!("lightcraft-testkit-{}", std::process::id()));
+        std::fs::create_dir_all(&dir).unwrap();
+        let log = dir.join("skips.jsonl");
+        let _ = std::fs::remove_file(&log);
+        let threads: Vec<_> = (0..8)
+            .map(|i| {
+                let log = log.clone();
+                std::thread::spawn(move || append(&log, &entry(Need::Gpu, &format!("no GPU {i}"), "t", "b", "f.rs", i)))
+            })
+            .collect();
+        for t in threads {
+            t.join().unwrap();
+        }
+        let text = std::fs::read_to_string(&log).unwrap();
+        assert_eq!(text.lines().count(), 8);
+        assert!(text.lines().all(|l| l.starts_with("{\"need\":\"gpu\"") && l.ends_with('}')));
+        std::fs::remove_dir_all(&dir).unwrap();
+    }
+
+    #[test]
+    fn a_missing_log_directory_does_not_fail_the_test() {
+        append(Path::new("/nonexistent-lightcraft-dir/skips.jsonl"), "{}\n");
+    }
+}
diff --git a/crates/ui-egui/Cargo.toml b/crates/ui-egui/Cargo.toml
index 74bc80058..38322d834 100644
--- a/crates/ui-egui/Cargo.toml
+++ b/crates/ui-egui/Cargo.toml
@@ -27,6 +27,8 @@ serde_json = { workspace = true }
 log = { workspace = true }
 
 [dev-dependencies]
+# tests record why they skip (`cargo xtask ci` lists the skips)
+lightcraft-testkit = { workspace = true }
 egui_kittest = { workspace = true, features = ["wgpu", "snapshot"] }
 lightcraft-denoise = { workspace = true, features = ["runtime"] }
 lightcraft-codecs = { workspace = true }
diff --git a/crates/ui-egui/src/i18n.rs b/crates/ui-egui/src/i18n.rs
index 109accfa9..c040492a3 100644
--- a/crates/ui-egui/src/i18n.rs
+++ b/crates/ui-egui/src/i18n.rs
@@ -597,7 +597,7 @@ mod tests {
                 lightcraft_engine::CRAFT_FONTS.iter().filter(|font| font.serves(language.script())).map(|font| font.family).collect();
             faces.dedup();
             if faces.is_empty() {
-                eprintln!("skipped {}: built without a craft-fonts face for {}", language.code(), language.script());
+                lightcraft_testkit::skip!(Fonts, "{}: built without a craft-fonts face for {}", language.code(), language.script());
                 continue;
             }
             ctx.fonts_mut(|fonts| {
@@ -1200,7 +1200,7 @@ mod tests {
         let samples = [(Locale::Ja, "日本語の文字"), (Locale::ZhHans, "简体中文字"), (Locale::ZhHant, "繁體中文字")];
         for (language, sample) in samples {
             if !lightcraft_engine::CRAFT_FONTS.iter().any(|font| font.serves(language.script())) {
-                eprintln!("skipped {}: built without a craft-fonts face for {}", language.code(), language.script());
+                lightcraft_testkit::skip!(Fonts, "{}: built without a craft-fonts face for {}", language.code(), language.script());
                 continue;
             }
             set_language(language);
diff --git a/crates/ui-egui/src/theme.rs b/crates/ui-egui/src/theme.rs
index a87a196ae..30a9823d1 100644
--- a/crates/ui-egui/src/theme.rs
+++ b/crates/ui-egui/src/theme.rs
@@ -415,7 +415,7 @@ mod tests {
     #[test]
     fn thai_face_is_a_fallback_in_every_ui_family_when_craft_fonts_carry_one() {
         let Some(thai) = lightcraft_engine::CRAFT_FONTS.iter().find(|f| f.covers("Thai")) else {
-            eprintln!("no Thai face in craft-fonts: nothing to check");
+            lightcraft_testkit::skip!(Fonts, "no Thai face in craft-fonts");
             return;
         };
         set_language(Locale::En);