Borrowings (Other Borrowings Narrative) (Details)	Mar. 31, 2015 USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2014 USD ($)	Mar. 31, 2014 USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2013 USD ($)	Mar. 31, 2015 Subsidiary, Libbey Portugal [Member] AICEP Loan [Member] Loans Payable [Member] USD ($)	Mar. 31, 2015 Subsidiary, Libbey Portugal [Member] AICEP Loan [Member] Loans Payable [Member] EUR (€)	Dec. 31, 2014 Subsidiary, Libbey Portugal [Member] AICEP Loan [Member] Loans Payable [Member] USD ($)	Mar. 31, 2015 Notes Payable [Member] USD ($)	Mar. 31, 2015 Notes Payable [Member] EUR (€)	Mar. 31, 2015 Loans Payable [Member] Subsidiary, Libbey China [Member] RMB Working Capital Loan [Member] USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2014 Loans Payable [Member] Subsidiary, Libbey China [Member] RMB Working Capital Loan [Member] USD ($)	Jul. 24, 2014 Loans Payable [Member] Subsidiary, Libbey China [Member] RMB Working Capital Loan [Member] USD ($)	Jul. 24, 2014 Loans Payable [Member] Subsidiary, Libbey China [Member] RMB Working Capital Loan [Member] CNY
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Debt instrument, face amount					$ 3,400,000	€ 3,200,000						$ 3,300,000	20,000,000
Interest rate					0.00%	0.00%				6.78%
Line of Credit Facility, Maximum Borrowing Capacity									1,000,000
Total borrowings	444,234,000	444,904,000			3,434,000		3,846,000	0		0	3,258,000
Line of Credit Facility, Interest Rate at Period End								5.80%	5.80%
Cash on hand	$ 18,616,000	$ 60,044,000	$ 24,473,000	$ 42,208,000