Congratulations!! I got married (my 2nd, his 1st) in May and it was also low-key and low-budget, but everyone said it was wonderful and one of the nicest weddings they had ever attended! We got married at a bed and breakfast - a big Victorian house- and it was not expensive and they provided all the glassware and plates and things, which was awesome.
I think the biggest thing is to decide ahead of time WHAT is most important to you? Is there a special flower you love that you want in your bouquet? Is there just some little touch you've always thought you'd like to have at your wedding- a certain color or decoration, a certain food, whatever??
I have to say that IMO- photographs are worth splurging on. Now- we were lucky because we have a co-worker who is a professional photographer and she took all our pictures as a gift! But honestly, that is one area where i would have spent money, because you will have those FOREVER.
What I would suggest is do NOT hire a 'wedding photographer' with expensive packages, and posed photos, etc. Try to find a newspaper photographer or someone like that who is willing to take DIGITAL shots for you and put them on Snapfish or a similar website so you and your family members can choose what you want prints of. We did this and it was lovely- I got color and black and white prints of all my favorite photos, cousins could order pics of their families, etc. - and I actually printed a picture of the cake as a magnet for our fridge, and used another picture on our thank yous.
So it is VERY flexible. Just look around- ask to see examples of other pics they've taken, you might even find a talented student willing to work inexpensively.
For flowers,etc. If there is ONE type of flower you love- build your bouquet around that, or just carry a couple of stems of it. You can actually have very nice flowers relatively inexpensively if you stick to what is in season and again, just decide what you really need. We had one floral arrangement in the hall of the home where we got married on the staircase landing- and then just had them MOVE the floral arrangement into the dining room for the food table when the ceremony was done and we all moved in there!
As far as food- no need for a sit-down dinner! We had tons of 'finger food' and got married in the morning and sort of had a brunch. It was elegant, but much much less expensive than a sit down meal. Since the space was not too big, this was also nice because people could mingle and go out onto the wrap around porch to sit and visit.
We only served iced tea, coffee, and punch. We considered having a toast- but my dad is a recovered alcoholic and although I know he would not have minded, we just thought "Do we really need to?" and honestly the answer was no. So unless having a bar is important to you- just do something like that- OR serve wine and beer only and buy it wholesale somewhere by the case and put it out in tubs of ice.
Please check out the AWESOME site www.offbeatbride.com for ideas!!
Some of them are a lot more 'creative' than I would have wanted, but it is full of really wonderful, original weddings and ideas for doing things your own way. So many people getting married in such personal ways, places, etc.- there is no 'official' way to get married now, so just write down what's most important to you and DO IT :)
Good luck to you on your wedding and congratulations again!!